


Live Free

by Ceroji



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe, Different Devil Fruit Luffy, Gen, Implied/Referenced Torture, Luffy can get really mad, Luffy can't talk a lot but his personality won't change that much, No he isn't overpowered
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-05
Updated: 2018-06-12
Packaged: 2018-09-22 07:07:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 27,551
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9590042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ceroji/pseuds/Ceroji
Summary: Some are born with freedom. Some have it taken away. Luffy was born as the son of a man hated by the government. He was born the son of a devil. That title only fits him more the second he's forced to eat a devil fruit.





	1. Prologue

A young woman sat in a dark brown chair, slowly rocking as the baby in her arms began to close its eyes. She hummed in content as little fingers wrapped around her pinky, planting a gentle kiss upon the baby’s raven black hair. Her mind drifted to her husband who left a few hours ago to talk to the others in the village about the unfairness of the world due to the power gap between citizens and the Celestial Dragons. It was common knowledge that nobles would do anything to keep their wealth and power, though the true extent they would resort to was beyond anything those living in the small village could imagine.

  
Once the breathing of her child had finally evened out, the woman closed her eyes and reveled in the silence. Being a new mother was one of the best feelings she ever experienced, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t tired after being woken up in the middle of the night. Just as she felt herself start to drift off, she sensed someone nearing the house. Her eyes popped open and her muscles tensed, ready to fight off anyone who would harm her child. Before she was able to get up from the chair the front door was kicked open with enough force to break its hinges.

  
Two men wearing suits with white coats hanging over their shoulders walked in. Behind them was another man who wore a white shirt with black suspenders and a red bow tie, the amount of golden rings on his fingers a sure sign of his status as a nobleman. Without looking, the woman could tell there were at least three more people waiting outside, all just as powerful as those standing in front of her. She shot a glance down at the sleeping child in her arms, releasing a quick sigh in relief as a soft snore sounded, before glaring at the intruders.

  
“Ma’am. I’m sure you know why we’re here,” the blonde man with the white coat said. Once he began to speak the woman focused on him, realizing he wasn’t just a typical man. He was a vice-admiral. Both the men were. She had seen that type of coat being worn enough times by her father-in-law to know the rank of the marines standing before her. “We have received reports that your husband has been influencing the rest of the civilians here to grow displeased with the government. As such, we must follow the law and detain you for questioning. We do not wish to harm you or your child, but if you do not cooperate…” The woman’s glare intensified at the unspoken threat. There was not a chance in the world she would let him come anywhere near her son. The nobleman, who had been quiet until now, let out a low whistle as she stood up. His eyes ran from the top of her light brown hair to her sock covered feet and back up, stopping at her chest for a few extra seconds. His eyes shone with the revolting thoughts running through his mind.

  
“It seems as though there has been a misunderstanding, Mr. Vice-Admiral. The only ones here are me and my son. My husband is still at work.” She shifted her baby in her arms as she spoke, making sure to keep one of her hands free. While he wasn’t technically at work, the couple had decided on this excuse months before in case of any problems. Figuring out a way to make the world a more equal place was practically her husband’s second job and both were aware of the dangers it could bring. The red haired vice-admiral walked closer to the woman. He reached over to grab her, not noticing she had drawn a knife that was hidden somewhere on her body until it was too late.

  
Blood dripped from the slash on his palm. The room was silent enough that each drop was accompanied with an audible ‘plop’ as it came into contact with the wooden floor. The injured marine wrapped his hand around her neck and lifted her a few inches off the floor so he could look her straight in the eye.

  
“That wasn’t the smartest idea. I’m a lot more powerful than a woman who gave birth a week ago,” he snarled as her face began to redden from lack of oxygen. She made sure to hold her child out of harm’s way with one hand while the other released its knife in favor of clawing at the hand that was preventing her from breathing. “I suggest you tell us where we can find your husband before things get…ugly.” As he was speaking the blonde vice-admiral had taken the child from his mother’s hold. Pain shot through the woman as her arm was twisted into an unnatural angle, but the fear of what he was going to do with her child overrode it as panic coursed through her veins.

  
“I told you to cooperate. Now, maybe we can settle this peacefully.” His words were not heard by the mother as she twisted and thrashed in the arm of her captor. The only thought running through her head was her need to escape and protect her son. Her eyes steeled as she pulled a second knife from its hidden location on her thigh and plunged it deep into the red vice-admiral’s neck. He dropped her and held his hands to his own neck to try to prevent it from bleeding, eyes wide with surprise at how fast she was able to move. It was proven to be a useless effort as the crimson liquid seeped out from between his fingers. Within seconds he was on the ground, life draining from his eyes.

  
The marine with her son had an expression of shock on his face. He had not expected the woman to resist at all, much less kill a vice-admiral. He moved to attack the woman and avenge his partner when a cough came from the direction of the forgotten noble.

  
“Well now, I do believe there is a way to solve this matter peacefully.” The noble walked between the two remaining people in the room. He turned to face the woman and placed a hand on her cheek. “The only person you truly need to arrest is that trouble-making husband, yes?” The marine blinked a few times before slowly nodding. “In that case, how about I take these two back to my house for some…special care?”

  
The woman’s eyes widened in alarm as she noticed the dangerous tone underlying his words. On the opposite side of the room, the vice-admiral paled and his lips formed a thin line. He was well aware of what was going to happen to the mother and her son. They would be kept in the noble’s mansion until he grew tired of them, or until they were unable to withstand the treatment he put them through. Then they would be taken and sold into slavery. The marine wanted to object. He wanted to do something to protect the civilians in front of him, it was what he joined the Marines to do after all, but he had no power to do so. Going against a noble would only result in the death of his family and himself after all.

  
Taking a deep breathe, the marine nodded and handed the still sleeping child to the noble who was slightly disgusted before a look of pure lust overtook his features. He eyed the woman and made sure she realized who was in control of her son’s life by running his hand along the baby’s head. The woman growled, ready to attack the noble, when the other marines came inside the house to see what was taking so long. The three new vice-admirals stopped with wide eyes as they saw the body on the floor. The blond marine quickly explained the situation to his comrades.

  
“We better get a move on then. We need to search the town before the husband has a chance to move.” The marine with a scar running from the corner of his eye to the middle of his cheek ordered the blond and the other two to search the town while he accompanied the noble back to his home with the mother and child. The scarred man was the strongest one there, and the woman wouldn’t be able to kill him without the same element of surprise she had on the red haired vice-admiral.

  
It was a short walk from the house to the noble’s mansion. Once they arrived, the marine followed the noble inside. The front door shut with a resounding ‘bang’ as the noble turned to face the woman. He licked his lips and gazed at her body.

  
“Don’t worry. I’m sure Dragon will be able to take care of himself. While he handles those marines, how about we get on with our own activities?” The noble called for a servant and a maid ran in. She made a deep bow before having to lunge forward to catch the baby as it was thrown towards her. “I’ll warn you now, but if you go against me for even a second I will not hesitate to kill that thing. Do you understand?”

  
The mother glared at the disgusting being in front of her, refusing to acknowledge it as a human, and nodded. She wasn’t arrogant enough to assume she could beat the vice-admiral standing guard before her son was harmed. His safety was her top priority. A cheshire grin spread across that thing’s face as he headed up the stairs. She walked past the maid holding her child before leaning down and pressing a swift kiss to his head. Before she left to follow that thing up the stairs, she leaned to whisper into the maid’s ear.

  
“Please take care of Luffy.” The maid gave a curt nod, but refrained from speaking. She wasn’t allowed to unless the noble gave her permission. The marine’s intimidating aura prevented her from moving away from the entrance of the house, despite the whip cracks and bed creaks she heard. Pinned to her spot, a tear fell from the corner of her eye as her grip tightened on the sleeping child in her arms. Knowing what was happening wasn’t enough to stop the downward spiral of events that was going to occur.


	2. Chapter 1

The next morning, she was forced to sit across from her son but was unable to hold or talk to him. The noble refused to return him, knowing she would leave the second her child was back in her arms. A new marine in the room was ready to shoot her if she showed any signs of disobedience.

“-and you will call me Ross III or you know what will happen, Lucy” The noble spoke as he finished laying out the ground rules for what his new possession could and couldn’t do. “Good. For now, Rosemary will take care of him.”

The two women made eye contact, a silent vow passing between them to care for the little one at all costs. They would rather give up their own lives than force him to live through the hell that was soon to come. Rosemary’s grey hair was tied up in a ponytail. She had been a servant of this noble family for the past forty years. It was too late for her to try to escape, since anyone she knew before had surely forgotten her, but she could still help the young mother. 

A year passed as Lucy was separated from her son, a different marine coming every day to ensure she didn't attack the noble. She was handcuffed to the bed of Ross III every night to prevent her from leaving. Rosemary was locked in a separate room with Luffy to make her unable to return him to his mother. It was emotionally tearing Lucy apart, being so close yet so far from her beloved son. She refused to give in, though, and went along with the selfish wishes of Ross III. Her husband was Dragon, after all, and she held onto the hope that he was going to rush in any day to save his family. She was unaware that the village was turned into a marine base in order to eliminate the growing detestation of the government and that, along with the influx of marines, the vice-admirals who had first broken into her home had agreed to spread the rumor that Lucy had managed to escape the island with Luffy.

They wouldn't get in trouble for handing her away to a noble, but it was preferable if they were able to blame their comrade’s death on Dragon. He already had a bounty for his political speeches against the government and the mere thought that a woman weak from childbirth was able to kill a vice-admiral was unspeakable. Lucy had been trained by Dragon, who was trained by his father ‘Hero of the Marines’ Garp, to protect herself so it wasn’t surprising she was able to kill the unsuspecting vice-admiral. With the rumor that his family was not on the island anymore, Dragon had left to find them.

Lucy waited, ignoring the ever growing fear that Dragon was actually dead and unable to come to her aid. She refused to cry though. No matter how much Ross III whipped her or beat her or made her submit to his every whim with the threat of harming Luffy, she refused to shed a tear. No. This man wasn't worthy of a response like that. Even living in a half starved state, to sap her strength, wasn’t enough to break her will. As one year turned into two, then three, then four, she began to doubt her day of escape was ever going to come.

The first, and only, time she had tried to leave was during her first year of servitude. An hour after Ross III had fallen asleep one night, Lucy dislocated her thumb and slid the handcuffs off. Without a sound she made her way to the bedroom door and crept out into the hallway. Running her hand along the wall, she navigated her way through the house to the room she felt two other presences in. Lucy removed the bobby pin that held her bangs out of her face and slid it into the lock. The door creaked open, making her abruptly stop and look behind her for any signs of a marine. She sighed in relief and fully stepped into the room and approached the bed. Rosemary shot up at the feeling of a hand on her shoulder but relaxed once she saw who it belonged to.

Rosemary nodded and carefully picked Luffy up from the bed, moving to hand him to his mother, when the lights flashed on. Standing in the doorway was a marine, gun level with Rosemary’s head. He began to shout at Lucy, warning her to back away. Then, Ross III came in. He took one look at the situation and shook his head while pinching the bridge of his nose.

“I warned you Lucy,” were his only words as he ripped Luffy from his maid’s hands. He briskly walked out of the room and into the kitchen next door. Lucy had a brief fight with the marine, hitting his temple as hard as she could to stun the man so she could catch up to her son. Once she made it into the kitchen she gasped. Ross III had a knife in his hand, positioned right over Luffy’s head. She screamed and ran at the noble, aiming to tackle him, when the marine she had hit knocked her to the floor. Lucy watched in horror as the knife dug into her child’s face, his cries echoing off the walls. As Ross III dropped the knife, he stared straight into Lucy’s eyes. “Next time, I won’t be so generous.”

Ross III headed back to where Rosemary was standing in shock before shoving the child in her arms and locking them in the room again. With shaking hands, Rosemary stitched the deep cut right below Luffy’s left eye. Lucy remained in the kitchen, hands covering her face as she cried. All of her frustration and anger at being unable to do anything finally becoming overwhelming as she put her son in harm’s way.

The trauma of her first escape attempt was enough to dissuade her from another, especially with the knowledge that her body was gradually becoming weaker from lack of food. She made the decision to not try again until she was sure she would be able to escape. It wouldn't mean anything if she left without her son. As the years dragged on, her chances became more and more slim.

Luffy was four when he started to speak coherent words. Ross III forbid Lucy and Rosemary from talking in front of him, which was the only place they were allowed to see each other. Luffy could only try to talk at night before he fell asleep. It took four years, but the results were well worth the wait.

Ross III had ordered his chef to prepare a fantastic meal for his lover’s birthday, nearly making Lucy choke on her disgust at the choice of words. While the chef was serving the main course of the dinner, with the help of that day’s marine who also liked to cook, Lucy noticed Rosemary whispering to her son and subtly pointing at her. Ross III was at the head of the table, sitting between her and Luffy, drinking his wine with an arrogant look on his face like he was in control. Ignoring the man, she met her son’s eyes and smiled. Her smiles were solely reserved for him the entire time they were in servitude. Luffy’s eyes lit up, his smile spreading across his whole face as he stood on his chair.

“Mama!” Luffy yelled across the table. Immediately, Lucy’s eyes began to water. Ross III may not be worthy of her emotions but Luffy was. She dropped her fork as her mouth fell open. Tears streamed down her face as she was so overwhelmed with happiness she couldn’t contain it. With a soft sniffle, Lucy nodded.

“That’s right. I’m your mother.” She wiped the cascading tears, only for them to be replaced by more. This was the happiest Lucy had been in four years and nothing could ruin it. Nothing except for the intervention of a certain enraged noble. He grabbed Luffy by the neck and pulled him off of his chair. The second the child’s body hit the floor, a gun pointed at his head. Lucy froze halfway into her punch aimed at the noble’s face.

“How does he know you’re his mother? How! Did you manage to sneak out of our room to see him? Were you disobeying me? Answer me!” Ross III screamed as his finger wrapped around to lay on the trigger. Lucy frantically shook her head, denying everything Ross III was saying. His face only preceded to get redder, thinking Lucy was lying straight to his face. Without warning, he pulled the trigger.

A shot rang out. Rosemary’s legs gave as she stared at the scene before her. Ross III dropped his gun and stumbled backwards, falling and landing on the ground. Luffy’s eyes widened as he saw his mother directly in front of him, blocking his view of the evil man. Lucy coughed, blood dripping from the side of her mouth. She smiled slightly as she gently wiped some of the blood splatter from her son’s face.

“Sorry Luffy. I wasn’t able to protect you. I never meant to be the reason you have a scar on your face. I wanted us to escape together, but now…well I guess that isn’t possible is it?” Blood soaked her shirt from the bullet wound in her heart. “I’m sorry I wasn’t able to teach you to talk or walk or pull pranks on your father. He’s such a stick in the mud but I’m sure he wouldn’t have minded playing with you.” Another cough. More blood. “Listen to me Luffy. I want you to grow up strong and happy, okay? No matter what. Make sure that you’re happy. You’re going to be free one day, so stay alive until then. Can you do that for me?” Tears were streaming down both their faces. Luffy had snot running out of his nose. He sniffled and took a shaky breath before nodding. Lucy smiled. She pulled her son towards her, kissing the top of his hair and then his forehead before hugging him. “Good. I’m so, so, so sorry I won’t be able to see you grow into the strong man I know you’ll be. Be safe, okay? Live free, Luffy. I love you.”

Luffy’s body shook from the force of his tears as his mother’s body went limp. She died protecting him with a smile on her face, glad she was able to finally hug him after four long years. While he didn’t quite understand everything that was happening, Luffy knew that he was losing someone who cared for him. The lady who took care of him for as long as he could remember had told him every day how much his mother, the woman who saved him, had loved him. His cries carried on. They grew louder as Ross III sobered up and called one of the guards from outside to take care of the body.

Rosemary tried to comfort Luffy but to no avail. Eventually he had fallen asleep. Every so often he would whimper, but thankfully not wake up. Ross III was taking care of the details regarding the death of Lucy and instructed Rosemary to carry the child to her room. Wordlessly complying, she carefully stood up and walked down the long hallway and into the room that was more like a prison than somewhere to sleep.

As morning rolled around, Rosemary noticed a weight being removed from her chest. Her eyes slowly opened before she gasped jumped up. There wasn’t a chance in hell she was going to let a marine take the boy. Not after she had already almost lost him. She made to grab the marine’s arm when he turned around and punched her in the stomach.

“Sir Ross III has already told us what to do regarding this child. You have no need to intervene.” The marine with a scar turned to leave when he felt the woman pull his leg. Rosemary refused to let him take Luffy, who she viewed as her grandchild. She promised Lucy four years ago, after all, that she would protect him no matter what. The marine stumbled before catching himself and kicking Rosemary in the side of her face. Her grip loosened a little as her vision swam, but she quickly tightened her hold.

“You don’t understand anything! I thought your job was to protect the innocent! That child hasn’t even had a chance to do anything wrong, yet you’re taking him away? Just from the order of one lowly noble? They might have wealth but they’re less human than a pile of garbage!” Rosemary continued to yell as she tried to stop the marine from leaving. Without any hesitation, he mercilessly kicked her until she stopped struggling. He turned and left the room carrying the child who lost the two most important people to him in a span of a few hours.

Luffy screamed and wiggled, attempting to make the man carrying him lose his grip, but he was much too strong to be bothered by the small child in his arms. The marine grew annoyed with the constant yelling and landed a swift hit to the back of Luffy’s head before he was out like a light. The marine sighed in relief and left the house. He approached the noble who was standing outside.

“Are you sure you don’t want to keep this child?” The scarred marine asked.

“Of course not. I only took him in the first place to make his mother obey me. Now that she’s dead I have no need for him. I already sold him to that man over there so just get rid of him already.” With a quick wave of dismissal, Ross III walked back inside. He passed the men carrying the body of his former maid and slammed the door closed. The marine carrying the now unconscious child shook his head and walked over to the man wearing a black suit with sunglasses. He handed Luffy over and walked back to the marine base on the island. He had only seen the boy twice, once now and once four years ago when he and his mother were first taken away, but it was hard to shake the feeling they would meet again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I might take a little longer to post the next chapter since I have to rewrite it. My original idea didn't work the way I thought it would...I hope to update every two weeks or so though! Suggestions and commentary are always welcome! Just to clear up any confusion: yes, Lucy is able to use observation haki. That's how she was able to find Luffy and Rosemary. It only makes sense for someone of her level. Being physically weakened didn't damper her observation haki, since it is more of a mental skill.


	3. Chapter 2

Garp sat with his head in his hands. He stared at the newest wanted poster of his son that had made its way to his desk, courtesy of Sengoku. It had been just slightly over a month since Dragon's first bounty, yet it had increased once again. This time it was due to freeing those who served nobles in a small village in the East Blue. Before that it was for influencing a town to overthrow their local government. Garp couldn’t find it in himself to even get mad at his son. After the call he had overheard years ago he understood the sentiment all too well.

_Purupurupuru-purupurupuru-pu-Gachak_

_“Fleet Admiral Sengoku. Status report?” Sengoku said into the den den mushi as he watched his longtime friend Garp shove more rice crackers into his mouth._

_“This is Vice-Admiral Swallow. We were able to come in contact with the family of the man who is speaking against the Marines. The man's name is Dragon, but he is nowhere to be found. We were only able to meet his wife, Lucy, and their son. I am looking for him as we speak but…” The voice from the snail trailed off as its owner heard a loud crash. Sengoku had slammed Garp into the floor when the man had jumped up at the mention of his son and daughter-in-law._

_“But what?”_

_“Ah. Yes. But we were unable to question her about the whereabouts of her husband as the noble that informed us of the situation demanded she serves him. She managed to kill Vice-Admiral Kest before her son was used as a hostage so she would obey him.” Garp stopped struggling as his eyes widened in shock. Sengoku grimaced but quickly replaced it with his poker face. He couldn’t let the den den mushi show his subordinate any weak emotions._

_“I see. Place the blame on Dragon for his death. We don’t want to let the public know a woman in a weakened state was able to defeat a high ranking officer. Many towns would riot and cause unnecessary problems.” Sengoku released the man he had pinned down and stood up. “Also, spread a rumor to get Dragon off the island. If he attacks the noble who knows what he might do next. That is all.”_

_“Yes! Thank you sir!” With that, the call ended. Sengoku turned around and looked at Garp who just nodded in his direction._

_“Thanks Sengoku. If Lucy had a bounty on her head she would never be able to escape. Dragon will probably figure out she’s responsible for the death but will assume she was able to leave.” Garp muttered as he looked at the floor, small droplets threatening to fall from his eyes. He clenched his hands into tight fists as he fought to keep his emotions in check.  
_

_“Think of it as an apology. I had no idea the one the rumors were about was your son. I know you were going to leave headquarters this week to go visit them but maybe it would be for the best if you stayed here.” Garp nodded and stood up, walking in a daze out of the office._

Garp may not hate his son for opposing the nobles and government, but he still believed in the marines and knew that there were more good ones than bad ones. Dragon’s attacks against the nobles had only started because he told his son the truth behind Lucy’s death. He knew what would happen if he told Dragon but it would have been inhumane to withhold that type of information.

As soon as the words left his mouth, the snail on his desk had gone dead silent. Dragon didn’t believe what Garp was telling him. He knew Lucy was strong, both of them knew that. That’s why Dragon thought it would be fine if he left her and Luffy alone for the night. It was why he assumed she killed the vice-admiral and escaped the island. After four years of not knowing where his wife and son were, suddenly finding out that the former was dead and the latter was missing was devastating. He spent four years searching for them. While he was ultimately able to help out other islands in East Blue during his search, it was not his main goal. Dragon blamed himself and the nobles for his loss. He began to round up those who opposed the government in order to form the Revolutionary Army. With this group, he would be able to simultaneously get revenge for his late wife, accomplish their goal of eliminating the oppression of the government, and look for his missing son. Garp took a deep breath and leaned back in his chair, wondering where his grandson could possibly be.

 ~~~~~~

Luffy’s eyes fluttered open as he woke up. He sat and stared around him for a second, not entirely sure where he was. The memories of the events that occurred the day before flashed through his mind. He made to jump up but was yanked back to the cold stones beneath him. Sitting once again, he was able to see the shackles around his legs. There was also a collar around his neck that was connected to the wall behind him. A look around didn’t help him figure out where he was as it was too dark to see anything. He stared straight ahead for a while in order to adjust his eyes to the lack of light in the room.

Although, it was more of a cell than of a room. Three of the walls were made out of dark grey bricks and the fourth was a wall of iron bars with a lock on them. Paying closer attention to the inside of the cell revealed that he was not alone. There were three other people with him, all of them girls. The first was a teenager with straight, jet black hair. On each side of her face she had a lock of hair with a yellow bead at the end. The second looked slightly younger with wavy orange hair and bangs. The third was about the same age as the second but was taller with green hair and a wider face.

All of them in the cell were chained by the collar around their necks to the wall. Luffy noticed that they had chains that were more of a greenish color than his but he ignored it as one of them started to talk to him.

“What’s your name?” The girl with the black hair asked, seeming to be the leader. Luffy stared at her with a smile on his face. The girl raised an eyebrow. “Can you understand what I’m saying?” She was met with the same look and a small nod from the newest member of their cell.

“Hancock? I don’t think he can talk…” The orange haired girl whispered. Hancock stared at the child looking at her. She tilted her head slightly to the side.

“Do you have parents? A dad? A mom?” Luffy’s eyes lit up at the mention of his mother, before they darkened and he shook his head. The girls frowned in understanding. “How about we introduce ourselves? I’m Boa Hancock and those are my younger sisters, Marigold and Sandersonia.” They waved to Luffy in turn as Hancock pointed to them.

In his time at the mansion of Ross III, Luffy had heard a few words and was able to partially understand conversations, but he was forbidden from talking. The only time he had done so resulted in the death of his mother. He wasn’t sure if the same rules applied here, but he wasn't going to take the chance. Before anything else could happen, a man wearing a guard outfit stepped in front of their cell.

“You,” the guard barked as he pointed his spear at Hancock. “Saint Lorat asked for you to come see him.” The girl’s eyes darkened as she stared at the floor, shaking in a mixture of disgust and fear. The guard slowly unlocked the door and removed her chains from the wall. He yanked her out of the cell and re-locked the door before leading Hancock down the hallway and out of sight. Luffy looked at the remaining girls in the cell, only to see they were scowling and glaring in the direction their sister was taken.

“If only they had forced her to eat any other devil fruit…” Marigold punched the floor next to her.

“They all deserve to die. Every last one of them.” Sandersonia spit out as she practically vibrated with rage. Luffy didn’t know why the girls were so upset but he began to worry for Hancock’s safety. The guard reminded him of Ross III, someone who could hurt others with no remorse.

She came back after a few hours, her hair slightly messy and her eyes a little glazed. The guard unlocked the cell and roughly shoved Hancock inside as he put her chain back on the wall. Re-locking the door, he left without another word. The sisters all curled up together, seeking comfort from one another.

“Shhh…It’s over now. They won’t come back for a couple days. As long as they think that your Mero-Mero powers can’t be used right away you’ll be fine. They don’t care about me and Marigold’s snake transformations either so we aren’t in danger. We’re all fine. As long as we listen to them we’ll all be okay. Everything is fine.” Sandersonia whispered to her sister as she fell asleep listening to the soothing words of comfort. Once they were sure she was sleeping, the younger siblings looked up and began to explain to Luffy where he was. They mentioned something about ‘Celestial Dragons’ that Luffy didn’t quite understand. Why would any group of people be allowed to hold that much power? He may not know much about them but he knew they couldn't be good if they caused those in the cell with him this much distress. The guard returned before he could think about it too much. The sisters immediately closed their mouths and stared at the man with a mixture of hate and shock. He wasn’t supposed to be back this soon. It hadn’t even been an hour since Hancock returned. They were usually left alone for a few days so Hancock could 'recharge' her powers.

“It’s your turn boy. Saint Lorat wants to see what his new slave looks like.” The guard repeated the same process he had done earlier and led Luffy out of the cell. They stopped in front of large wooden doors. The guard knocked and a faint voice gave him permission to enter. The door opened and Luffy was pushed inside. He fell on his face but quickly righted himself to a standing position.

“So you’re the new slave? Hmm…you’re not a girl but I suppose I can still use you as a source of entertainment.” The man wearing a weird bubble over his head got off of his chair, or rather got off of the person he was using as a chair, and walked over to Luffy. He ran his hand along the side of Luffy’s face, making Luffy cringe and back away. The man's face twisted in rage. “You dare think you can move without permission? A being like you is nothing more than garbage to a Celestial Dragon like me! I’ll show you your place!” Saint Lorat motioned towards one of the men standing along the wall of the room who briskly walked over with a long, thin stick. There was no time to question what the Celestial Dragon was going to do with it as he whacked Luffy across the face with it.

The shock and pain of the blow was enough to send him to the ground. He held his cheek as he stared at the man with wide eyes, unable to comprehend what he had done to anger the person in front of him. Once again, the stick was brought down towards Luffy. Upon impact, he curled into a ball with his back in the air and his face on the ground. The pain was worse than anything he ever experienced. Hit after hit came in contact with his skin. Each cut stinging more than then last. After what felt like hours, Luffy was covered in thin lines that oozed blood. He couldn’t stand much less walk. The Celestial Dragon huffed, temporarily satisfied, and ordered his men to take Luffy out of his sight. The guard saluted and dragged him out of the room by the chain attached to his collar. Being dragged along the stone floor only made his cuts hurt worse but he didn’t have the energy to stand or fight back. As soon as the guard had once again left, the sisters pulled him into their hug. He whimpered slightly at the sudden contact with his injuries but soon relaxed into comforting presences around him.

“I can’t believe they would hurt someone as young as you. Nothing about them is human,” Hancock angrily muttered as she began to gently stroke his hair in order to soothe him. They may harbor deep hatred and resentment against the Celestial Dragons, and men in general for their desire over Hancock’s devil fruit, but not against someone in the same position as themselves. They could never hate someone who went through the same things they had.

“At least it doesn’t look like they branded him yet.” Marigold was behind him, checking his back for any sign of the mark that the Celestial Dragon’s used to tag their slaves. The brand would mark his inability to escape. It would cast him into a life where he would never be truly free. In the comfort of the other three slaves, Luffy’s eyes began to close. The pain finally overtaking him and making him fall asleep.

He was still in the midst of the others when he woke up. As he stretched to shake off the sleepy feeling he had, Luffy noticed the cuts on his arms were mostly healed. He turned around to try to see his back, where he knew he had more, but they were gone too.

“They like to make sure to heal any wounds as fast as possible. We put the medicine they gave us on your injuries after you fell asleep.  A damaged slave is useless to them and they have more fun making new marks on us.” Sandersonia had noticed Luffy examining his body. He cast one last look at his hands before smiling at the girl. She looked shocked for a moment before shaking her head. She knew the innocence of this child wouldn’t last long. Not in here. Hancock cleared her throat, drawing attention to herself.

“How did you get that scar?” She questioned the child in front of her. While abrupt, if he was going to be living in such a close proximity to her sisters she wanted to learn more about him. Luffy thought for a moment. Rosemary had explained the mark to him a few weeks before her death, since he was finally old enough to understand enough words to learn what happened. He made a stabbing motion, demonstrating instead of explaining, and held up one finger.

Sandersonia gasped at the realization of what he was implying. Someone attacked a child who wasn’t even old enough to walk. Hancock turned away, making a ‘tsk’ in disgust. She asked if the one who hurt him had a bubble over his head and antenna hair like Saint Lorat. After a shake of his head, she tried to see if it was a noble. Luffy paused for a moment, recognizing the word, and nodded. Hancock shook her head. It was bad enough the Celestial Dragons thought they were better than other humans, but the idea that simple nobles did as well was infuriating. No other inquiries were made since the guard from yesterday appeared again. The sisters immediately had their defenses raised. It was unusual for any of them to be summoned the day after Hancock was and Luffy was called recently as well. He motioned at Luffy before dragging him out of the cell and back to the room Saint Lorat was in yesterday. The Boa sisters' blood froze as they came to a realization shrouded in horror.

They knew Saint Lorat only had female slaves, but had simply assumed it was due to his hatred of peasant males. He wouldn’t request to see a male slave just to execute him. The guards would take care of it for him. No. It was more serious than that. He wanted to destroy Luffy in every sense of the word. Emotionally. Physically. Mentally. He was going to make Luffy his new toy.

Panic began to build in the girls’ bodies. They couldn’t do anything to stop what was happening but they desperately prayed that the youngest member of their cell would miraculously be spared. An hour passed. Then another. Finally the guard returned with a chain in hand, a body on the floor next to him. Once he unlocked the door he whipped the body inside and left, not sparing a second glance at the three forms glaring murderously at him. Luffy tried to get up but couldn’t feel his arms. Bruises covered his body in various shades of black, blue, and purple. It hurt. He vaguely thought that it was worse than what happened yesterday. Pain quickly became the most dominant thought in his mind. Marigold helped him sit up, biting her lip hard enough to break the skin. Before she knew what was happening, a small shaking hand had wiped the blood away.

With the action, her head shot up to look at Luffy’s face. There was no small amount of surprise when she was met with a cheerful, albeit weak, smile. Hancock and Sandersonia’s jaws dropped. None of the slaves that were here before the child in front of them, not even themselves, had been able to smile at all. The three Boa siblings were the only ones who had even managed to survive, mostly due to Hancock’s Mero-Mero powers and the fact that Saint Lorat didn’t want to lose them. Yet here was the youngest slave they had seen, someone who smiled even after being beaten. Someone who was not drowned in sadness. Someone whose main concern was not their own safety. Someone who would serve as their light of hope in this dark pit of hell.

 

It hadn’t been a long time since Luffy became a slave, maybe just over a week, but he had already forged a bond with the three siblings. He never spoke to them but would listen with rapt attention to the stories they told of their homeland. The most interesting ones were those about the Kuja Pirates. Luffy had never heard of pirates before but the mere idea of people being free enough to go wherever they wanted was exhilarating. He didn't have the faintest idea of what it would be like to not have to listen to the commands of others. His mother’s wish for him to ‘live free’ rang through his head after he had heard the first story about pirates. He wanted to be able to sail the seas and travel the world. Dreams of the never ending ocean where he only had to do what he wanted to kept his nightmares at bay.

These dreams, however, were not strong enough to drive away the pain from his daily beatings. Saint Lorat found more pleasure in harming the child than in using Hancock for pleasure. The guard who regularly dragged Luffy from the cell to the room of his torture stood in front of them with heart shattering news.

“Saint Lorat has decided to keep you. He has deemed you as an acceptable source of entertainment and has ordered you to be branded with the Hoof of the Flying Dragon. You’re lucky that he spared your life.” Hancock quickly stood up, trying to grab Luffy before the guard could pull him out of the cell.

“No! You can’t! Branding him will only serve to completely steal his freedom-” Hancock couldn’t finish her sentence as the guard shoved the blunt end of his spear into her stomach. She coughed up blood and released her hold on Luffy to wrap her arms around herself.

“Watch how you speak about a Celestial Dragon. If Saint Lorat wasn’t particularly fond of your…abilities…I would have killed you right here. Now, let’s go.” Without another word, Luffy was taken. Hancock released a stream of curses at her inability to prevent yet another person, like her sisters years ago, from being forced into the eternal life of slavery.

Luffy couldn’t shake the feeling of dread building up in his chest as he neared the wooden doors. Something was wrong. It was hotter than normal and the hallway seemed darker. It wasn't like the other days he had been forced to come to this room. As soon as the guard knocked on the doors, they slowly opened and revealed the Celestial Dragon sitting on another person wearing chains. There was a large fire going in the fireplace nearby with a metal rod standing up in a bucket of water. The guard pulled Luffy so he was laying on his stomach on the floor in front of Saint Lorat. His arms were held down to prevent his escape.

His thrashing was little more than a waste of energy. He tilted his head up just enough to see the sadistic grin on the face of the Celestial Dragon. Luffy’s body froze. This wasn’t right. The situation seemed dangerous. Every part of his body screamed at him to get away, but he couldn't move. As Saint Lorat moved closer to the boy, he motioned at one of the men along the wall to grab the metal rod. They quickly complied and thrust the rod into the flames, heating it to the point where it was glowing red.

“This truly is my favorite part of acquiring a new slave.” Without warning, the red hot metal brand was pressed into the center of Luffy’s back. The only thought he had was about how painful it was. He felt like his skin was on fire. His body thrashed as he tried to escape the guard's grasp. He screamed and cried as the pain continued, eventually giving in to the black that had entered the corners of his vision and falling unconscious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I used those squiggles to show a change in scene. I didn't want it to just be the next paragraph. Thank you (once again) for reading! I super appreciate any and all feedback or suggestions on what you want to happen. Predictions are great too!


	4. Chapter 3

As he woke up, Luffy’s first reaction was to panic. He had to leave. He had to escape the pain. His eyes shot open and he tried to sit up and run only to find that he was held in place. Before more fear could set in, however, he realized he was not being held down by the guards. Swiveling his head around revealed the sleeping forms of the three sisters. The tension left his body as it became apparent that he wasn’t in any immediate danger. Luffy began to relax into the person behind him, Marigold he guessed, when a searing pain exploded in his back. A small whimper escaped his lips.

“You’re awake? Does it still hurt?” Sandersonia questioned him as she helped Luffy sit upright to take the pressure off of his brand. He shook his head as the pain subsided once his back was no longer in contact with anything. “You’ve been asleep for a few days. We did the best we could with what they gave us, so you should only feel that pain when your back touches something,” Sandersonia paused and looked away, tears threatening to fall.

“The brand will be permanent though,” Hancock whispered. She clenched her hands into fists at her side. “I’m sorry. We weren’t able to stop them. Now, your freedom has been taken away just like ours.” Luffy tilted his head to the side. He didn’t know what ‘permanent’ meant, but it had to be something bad based on how Hancock was reacting. She only looked like this when her sisters were being hurt. His main concern was the loss of his freedom. Images of his mother filled his mind. He shook his head to rid himself of those thoughts. After all, this wasn’t enough to stop him.

Luffy stared at Hancock and smiled. His grin stretched across his cheeks, completely free of the despair that came to reside in the faces of all slaves. The Boa sisters were shocked. Their resolve to protect the innocence of the child before them strengthened, tightening the bonds between the slaves.

 

Three years later and Luffy was seven, Hancock was nineteen, Sandersonia was seventeen, and Marigold was sixteen. Luffy had not talked during their time together but he was still able to form a bond with the others. A few slaves were bought but none had made it more than a couple months before they died of starvation or were executed by the orders of Saint Lorat. Hancock was still called upon frequently so Saint Lorat could take advantage of her Mero-Mero powers. Sandersonia and Marigold were typically taken to the kitchen to help prepare food for the Celestial Dragon, since he had no desire to see them use their snake based transformations. They were, in his words, beneath him.

Luffy was taken daily to be beaten, however Saint Lorat quickly grew tired of the work this endeavor required. After a few months, it happened only once a week. Just when Luffy began to enjoy the lack of pain, it took a turn for the worse. Saint Lorat found joy in watching a child fight against much larger, adult slaves. He bought male slaves specifically for this purpose and threatened to kill them if they did not partake in the fight. It started with simple fist fights, an event that would lead to pain but not death for one of the saint's favorite toys. As Luffy grew older, however, he began to learn how to fight back and started to beat his opponents.

“Ahh…This is boring. I don’t want to see him win. Execute the loser and take the other back to his cell.” Ignoring the pleas for another chance, Saint Lorat left the room and a guard quickly plunged his spear into the chest of the newest male slave. Luffy turned his head away. He was angry at the guard for killing the man. Angry at the Celestial Dragon for throwing a life away. But mostly, he was angry at himself. For some reason, he was always spared from death. Luffy knew he would be locked in a cell by himself for a week without food if he lost. He also knew that those he beat would be executed on the spot. If he lost on purpose then both of them would live, but that meant that the Celestial Dragon could grow bored in the week of his absence and hurt the Boa sisters more than normal. It happened before and there was no doubt Hancock would have to submit to the Celestial Dragon twice as much. Luffy scowled at the ground as he was lead back to his normal cell. No matter what he did it was a lose-lose situation.

The second the guard left, Luffy and the Hancock sisters did their routine of checking one another for wounds. The one that left, after all, didn’t know if the others were hurt while they were gone. Once all four of them were satisfied, Marigold began to talk of their homeland. It was a form of comfort and distraction for the four so they could get their minds off the hell of their daily lives. This time, she was telling the story of how they were first allowed to join the pirate crew of their island. She stopped mid-sentence when she heard a door open. The guard came to a stop in front of their cell.

“Saint Lorat has demanded you. He has found a way to make your duels more…exciting.” A smirk was evident on his lips as he dragged Luffy by his chains for the second time that day. Once they got to the giant wooden doors, they stopped. The guard knocked and was granted permission to enter. He yanked Luffy up by the collar around his neck and threw the boy inside.

Luffy landed with a dull ‘thud’ at the feet of the Celestial Dragon. Next to him was a small table with a mirrored tray on it that held a single glass of wine. On his other side was a second guard, this one with a knife in his belt. He was pulled into a kneeling positon.

“You’re lucky. I could have you killed for making me watch such a boring fight, but instead I’m going to give you a chance to make up for it. I want to know what this devil fruit does and you happen to be the perfect thing to use to find out.” Saint Lorat laughed cruelly, his layers of fat slightly giggling with the action. Luffy felt bile rise in his throat. They wanted him to eat a devil fruit? Why? Aren’t those supposed to sell for a lot of money? Although…they have enough money that buying such a rare fruit just for their entertainment is a simple matter.

Before he could process what was happening, the guard that dragged Luffy into the room was holding him in place. Saint Lorat stood in front of him with a strangely shaped fruit in his hand. It looked similar to a dragon fruit, but was deep, blood red with small, lighter red swirls that had black ends covering it. The stem that came from the top of the fruit and was a black crescent shape. The fruit was being pushed against his lips as he struggled to escape the arms limiting his movement.

“Stop struggling you plebian,” Saint Lorat growled. The guard delivered a quick jab to the side of Luffy’s throat to make him gasp in pain. The guards didn’t care about him. They only cared about whether or not they were alive. Even if it meant sacrificing a child, they would obey every whim of the one they served. The second his mouth opened the fruit was shoved inside and he was forced to take a bite. He didn’t want this. He wouldn’t swallow it. No. He refused to give in to these beings that thought they were above him. As he shook his head side to side, the guard covered his mouth and nose to prevent him from breathing.

Luffy’s eyes widened in fear. If he didn’t swallow he would suffocate. Death or resignation. His desire to live outweighed his desire to go against the thing that had held him as a slave for the past three years. The devil fruit was the worst thing he had ever eaten. Rotten and moldy bread tasted better than it. Luffy gagged and wanted to throw it up but the rest of the fruit was being pushed into his mouth. Tears streamed from his eyes as he was forced to eat the rest of it before the Celestial Dragon and guard released him and stood a few steps away.

He was on his hands and knees, spitting to try to get the taste out of his mouth. A few minutes passed and he was able to calm down, not feeling any different than he did before. Then, the Celestial Dragon grabbed his cheek and pulled.

“You said this was the Gomu-Gomu fruit. Shouldn’t its skin be stretching like rubber by now?” Saint Lorat pulled Luffy by his arm only to drag the boy upwards. He turned to glare at the guard with the knife.

“Your majesty, some devil fruits take time to activate,” the second guard explained quickly. He couldn’t control if the devil fruit was real or not. He didn't even buy the thing. Saint Lorat made the purchase at the last auction they had gone to. Sweat began to cover his face as he tried to save himself from the wrath of the Celestial Dragon in front of him.

“Who said you had permission to speak?” Pulling out a gun, Saint Lorat pointed it at the head of the man and shot. His death was instantaneous. “Whatever. Call in the other guards so they can clean up this mess and get that thing out of my sight.” Four other guards came into the room and made a beeline to the body of their friend.

“Right away sir.” The original guard with the spear pulled Luffy up by his chain and started to have them walk back to the cells when Luffy stopped. His body was hot, like he was being submerged in a tub of lava. All of his muscles felt like they were twisting, trying to escape his small frame. He screamed and fell on his back to the ground, squeezing his eyes shut. Confusion and pain covered his senses as he tried to figure out what was happening. Wasn’t the fruit a fake? Why was he in so much pain? Everything was burning.

“Get up already you useless piece of trash.” Saint Lorat kicked him in face, causing his hands to go to his nose to try to stop the bleeding. Why did the Celestial Dragons exist? Why did they think they were better than everyone else? What makes them so great? All they do is hurt others. They enslave innocent people like Hancock and Marigold and Sandersonia. It wasn’t fair. Luffy hated them with every fiber of his being.

Luffy’s hands flew up to where his forehead met his hairline, forgetting about the blood steadily gushing out of his nose. It felt as though his skull was being split in half. Searing pain overrode every other thought in his mind, making it hard for him to even remember to breathe. Short gasps of air were all he could manage as he arched his back off the floor, unable to scream anymore. There wasn’t enough oxygen in his lungs for that. The Celestial Dragon moved backwards, wary of what was going on with his slave writhing on the floor, and knocked over the table next to himself. A thin layer of sweat covered Luffy’s body, but did nothing to relieve the burning sensation he was feeling. Then, everything stopped.

He couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t feel his heart beating in his chest. His body was paralyzed. No. Luffy couldn’t die here. He had promised to stay alive long enough to be free. He wasn’t going to let some dumb fruit kill him.

His body became even hotter. All the pain intensified tenfold. Luffy cracked one eye open, just enough to notice the dull red glow of his body. He didn’t know what was happening, but he knew his skin wasn’t supposed to be that color. Suddenly, his pain subsided. It vanished just as quickly as it came. Luffy fully opened both his eyes and blinked. There was no residual pain, no lingering tension in his body. He felt light. A small ‘swish’ sounded behind him that made him spin around. Nothing was there. Confused as he heard the sound behind him once again, he turned just his head and noticed a black tail that ended in a spade like shape attached to the small of his back. Luffy reached to touch it when he noticed his nails were black and sharper than before. They looked like short claws.

He looked from his legs to his shoulders, everything was the same except his red-tinted skin, tail, and nails. He slowly reached up and felt his hair. It didn’t seem to change but as he moved his hand down towards his face he stopped. Looking around frantically, Luffy ran towards the mirror tray that was now laying on the ground. Saint Lorat tried to move backwards, away from the monster before him, when he stumbled and fell. As Luffy grabbed the mirror and held it up to eye level, he froze. At the top of his forehead were two black horns. He removed a hand from the mirror and touched one of them to find it feeling solid and cold. He couldn’t study his new structure since a shot ricocheted off the tray in hands. Luffy lowered the tray and stared at the Celestial Dragon shaking so much the pistol in his hand was waving side to side.

“Monster! You’re a monster! Die!” Four more shots were fired. None of them hit despite the close range due to that thing’s shaking. Luffy mentally scoffed, if anyone was a monster it was the one who enslaved people.

_You’re not a monster. You’re a demon._

Luffy looked around, trying to find the source of the voice.

_The devil fruit you ate was the Akuma-Akuma fruit. It’s a mythical Zoan that allows you to take the form of a demon. Mythical Zoans are the rarest of all the devil fruits. Eating one on accident is almost never heard of. You’re a lucky kid. Well, lucky you got a Mythical Zoan at least. You could’ve been forced to eat something like that rubber one they spoke of._

The voice wasn’t coming from someone in the room around him. It was coming from inside of him, as though the fruit itself was talking. He stared at Saint Lorat on the ground, who was now yelling at the guards to kill the monster before he ordered them to be killed. Luffy felt his blood boil from his anger. The thing in front of him was still treating lives like toys. He’s terrified of dying but forces others to do his bidding with threatening their deaths? It was revolting.

_You know…One of the abilities that are granted to the user of the Akuma-Akuma fruit is the power to heighten the anger of others or yourself._

No thoughts were necessary to activate the skill, his body not used to handling the new strength stored inside it. His powers flowed out like a broken dam, eyes turning pitch black as his tail quickly flicked back and forth. There was no hesitation in his movement as Luffy moved closer to the Celestial Dragon on the floor. The being was shaking. He kept pulling the trigger of the empty gun in his hand in hopes of saving himself. Luffy wanted to laugh. Now he can understand the fear all of his slaves had to live with every single day. The fear of knowing you could die any moment at the whim of one person. His mind was clear as he reached forward and ripped through Saint Lorat’s chest with his claws to tear out his heart. Blood sprayed from the wound as the Celestial Dragon collapsed. The guards surrounding them in the room dropped their weapons as one in shock. They couldn’t process the idea that someone, a child no less, had just murdered a Celestial Dragon. No one was allowed to so much as stand in their presence without permission. Even giving them the smallest wound was unheard of.

Luffy’s head twisted sideways fast enough to cause whiplash in any normal human, his dark eyes landing on the nearest guard. Before the guard with the spear could blink, the demon raked his claws down the man’s face. The screams of the others echoed off the walls as they watched the small demon kill a second person. The one closest to the door tried to run, but before he even reached the handle he fell forward. Four long scratches gushed blood onto the floor.

The other three guards hastily picked their weapons up, realizing their only chance of survival was to eliminate the creature in front of them. One of them screamed and rushed Luffy with a bo staff and swung it downwards, only to be met with nothing. Luffy was next to the guard and thrust his hand into the man’s side before he yanked his claws down. Two left.

“Die you monster!” The guard with a sai rushed towards Luffy. Luffy met him head on and used his height to duck under the guard’s swing. His claws dug straight into the man’s heart. An arrow whizzed past Luffy’s face, leaving a small scratch on the side of it. As he pulled his hand away from the now dead man, Luffy turned towards the last guard. The two stared at each other, deciding what to do, when Luffy sprinted towards him. He didn’t give the man time to blink before he stabbed him in the neck with his claws and dragged them down to his stomach before pulling them out. The final guard fell and Luffy paused to take a breath.

He looked down at his blood soaked hand. A few seconds passed in the now dead quiet room before Luffy realized what he’d done. He _was_ a monster. He did the exact same thing they had done to the slaves. He was no better than them. With small tremors, Luffy crouched down and used his hands to cover his face. His tears were unstoppable. Luffy rubbed his face, trying to get rid of the wetness on his cheeks, only to get more blood on them. As he pulled his hands away from his face he noticed his skin was back to its normal color along with his nails. Figuring the same thing happened with his horns, Luffy took a deep breath and stood up. His legs shook but it wasn’t enough to deter him from stopping.

A quick glance around the blood covered room led him to walk a few feet to the right to the body of the guard with the spear. Luffy bent down next to the man and lifted the side of his shirt to find a ring of keys. The guard had used them enough times over the years for Luffy to know where they were. He slid one of them into his collar and watched in relief as it fell to the floor. He did the same thing with the shackles around his feet.

He slid the keys into a pocket in his pants and stood back up, heading towards the wooden doors he had walked through countless times. This was the final time he would see them. As they were pushed open, Luffy left the room and began the short walk back to his cell. The wall was used to catch his body as he stumbled. It took longer than usual to get back but the other guards in the building were too busy calling someone on a den den mushi and panicking in the bloody room to bother chasing him down. The noise levels rose as Luffy reached the cell.

Hancock was the first to try to rush towards Luffy, only for her movement to be limited by her chains. Sandersonia and Marigold soon followed. They stared at the boy in front of them in shock. The child that was innocent enough to smile despite being branded, kind enough to make sure they were unharmed before even bothering to look at this own injuries, was now standing before them in blood soaked clothes with the same substance splattered on his face and covering his hands.

“W-What happened? Are you okay? Where did all that blood come from?!” Hancock stared at the small boy in front of her. Marigold snapped out of her daze next and began to try to get answers from him, soon followed by Sandersonia. Luffy reached into his pocket and pulled the keys out. Marigold gasped.

“How did you get those? Where is the guard? What happened!” Luffy shook his head and insert a key into the lock. He frowned when it wouldn’t turn and tried a new one. It took a few tries but he eventually managed to find the right key. As soon as the door was unlocked he walked in and began to undo Hancock’s collar. He felt weak unlocking it, but disregarded the feeling as it came off and he moved to do the same to the shackles on her feet.

Hancock was at a loss of words as she rubbed her neck were her collar had been. It was a surreal experience. She never imagined the kairoseki collar would come off unless she was being forced to use her powers for the Celestial Dragon. When she finally came out of her shock, she realized Luffy had taken all of Sandersonia’s chains off and only had to remove Marigold’s collar for them to be free. Luffy’s hands were shaking as he tried to get the key into the lock. Sweat started to bead on his forehead as he held the key in both hands in an attempt to steady it.

Hancock started to walk over to him when she heard a door click. Luffy paused his attempts and glanced at the door. He knew he had a minute at most before someone was there. Quickly turning back towards Marigold, he stuck his tongue out of the side of his mouth and concentrated on the lock. Despite the weakness he felt at being so close to the greenish collar, Luffy’s shaking hands finally managed to undo the lock. His knees gave out and he collapsed to the ground.

Hancock grabbed Luffy’s arm and pulled him to his feet. She left the cell and began to walk away with his arm in her hand when she felt a second hand release her grip. She spun around to look at Luffy, ready to yell at him that they needed to hurry when she stopped. Her blood ran cold as she realized what the boy was trying to do. She shook her head.

“No. You can’t do this. We aren’t going to leave without you.” Hancock ignored the slight shake she heard in her voice and the heat behind her eyes. She wouldn't cry. Nothing was going to stop them from escaping. Especially not being distracted by a few measly tears. Sandersonia and Marigold stood behind their sister.

“She’s right! You’re the one that freed us in the first place!” Sandersonia protested with clenched hands. The footsteps were getting closer. Whoever was coming towards them was coming fast. Less than a minute before they arrived.

“We’ve lived through hell together for the past three years. You can’t stay behind! We don’t care if you’re about to fall over, you’re coming with us even if we have to carry you.” Marigold reached towards Luffy but he staggered backwards. He shook his head and pointed towards the end of the hallway opposite from the footsteps. Twenty seconds.

“I’ll just…Slow you down…Run…Please…” Luffy gasped out. His voice was a little rough after not being used in so long, but the sisters suddenly froze. They couldn't move. Then, they took a step back in unison. It felt like something was controlling their movements. The footsteps sounded closer. Ten seconds. Hancock felt the tears spill over as she held up her fist with just a pinky extended.

“Promise me that we’ll meet again. I don’t care if it’s in days, months, or decades. Promise me-No, promise us, that you’ll live.” Marigold and Sandersonia held up their hands in a similar fashion. Luffy smiled weakly as he copied their actions. Five seconds. The three sisters finally turned and ran, praying for his safety, as Luffy collapsed to the ground. His head was spinning and black dots were filling his vison. Two seconds. He looked down the hallway and sighed in relief. His friends were out of sight and hopefully on their way to their escape.

Before he could close his eyes and give in to the tiredness fogging his mind, he noticed the footsteps he had heard earlier stop. They were here. Luffy’s eyes followed the black boots up to the face of a man. With a slight frown, Luffy put his hand on the wall behind him and shakily pushed himself to stand. He glared at the man in the white coat over his suit. He got into a fighting stance, not willing to let the stranger follow after the Boa sisters. The man seemed frozen. His mouth hung open.

“Luffy…Is that you?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's right, Luffy is finally escaping the evil clutches of the Celestial Dragons! And yes, his devil fruit is the Demon-Demon fruit. It's not your typical zoan, though, so he's going to discover a few more powers along the road. I think that some fruits talk to their user, maybe with something similar to the Voice of All Things, in order to let them know the name of their fruit. (and maybe some other stuff for those who can hear it) It is not something that'll happen again though. What happens next...who knows? It's subject to change based on the feedback or suggestions y'all give. Stay tuned for the next chapter!


	5. Chapter 4

The man’s question threw Luffy off guard for a second before a low growl escaped his lips and he went back to being prepared to fight. Why did this man know his name? Not even the guards or Boa sisters knew. It doesn’t matter. As long as he is able to move, Luffy will do anything and everything he can to slow the man down.

“Luffy…I...I can’t believe you’re alive. It’s been so long I figured you were-” The marine stopped talking as he saw the boy’s eyes turn pitch black for a second. His heart nearly tore in half as he fully took in the child’s poor condition. Luffy was covered in blood and panting heavily. He swayed slightly side to side as though it were taking all of his energy just to avoid passing out. The man kneeled down and reached towards Luffy. “My name’s Garp. I’m a marine.”

Before he could utter another word, Luffy lunged towards him. Well, tried to lunge that is. He couldn’t move fast enough for it to be considered more than a slow reach. Garp grabbed the child’s wrists and hugged him to his chest. Ignoring the blood that was now staining his white coat, Garp sighed in relief. Luffy struggling against his hold, albeit weakly, was just another way for Garp to reassure himself that his grandson was alive.

Luffy glared harder at the man- Garp apparently- as his movement was being slowly restricted. He didn’t want to be caught. What if they just sold him to a new master? His hand went towards the marine’s face in an attempt to push him away or inflict some sort of damage. Before it even made contact though, Luffy felt his exhaustion hit his body as his limbs went limp. His vision started to fade as he slipped into unconsciousness.

“I’ll protect you, my grandson.”

 

Garp paced outside the infirmary on his ship as he anxiously waited for news about Luffy’s condition. It had already been an hour yet the doctor still had no updates for him. One of his subordinates even came over a few minutes ago with a bag of rice crackers to try to calm him down. Garp didn’t even look away from the sole door that was separating him from his grandson. It was as if the world around him didn’t exist. Finally, the head doctor opened the door. He stood in front of her, desperate to hear the next words out of her mouth.

“He’s stable, but the amount of injuries he’s sustained is overwhelming to say the least. It seems like they wanted to keep his appearance relatively unchanged, since his scars are barely noticeable. The most prominent one, below his eye, seems to be six years old at least.” Garp scowled but chose not to interrupt. He knew how old Luffy was. Learning how young Luffy was when he was first scarred didn’t make the situation any easier to handle, but Garp swore to himself he would remain silent until he learned everything he could.

“He has countless bruises and marks covering his skin but they have healed to the point that they are unnoticeable unless someone knew what to look for. His main physical problem is his exhaustion. It goes beyond anything I’ve ever seen before. I have no idea what he had to go through but it doesn’t match his injuries. His body is practically shutting down right now in order to conserve energy. There’s one more…problem, if you could call it, that I believe you should see for yourself, Garp. Alone.”

The marine’s eyebrow rose in surprise. What could he possibly need to see in person? It wasn’t as though he didn’t trust the doctor. She was the sole person operating on his grandson after all. The others helped cleaned the boy of the excess blood on his skin before being kicked out by the head doctor. Without questioning her, though, Garp followed her into the infirmary.

“I didn’t let the others see this. The second I took off his shirt to start to clean the wounds on his back I had them all leave. I figured I should let you make the call on what to do about this. I owe you my life after you convinced me to use my skills for a better cause, after all. I’ll follow along with whatever you want to do, sir.” He didn’t think he could be more confused before the head doctor started talking but was proven wrong. There wasn’t a chance to ask for more details as the pair stood next to the bed of the shallow breathing child.

Garp didn’t breath. He didn’t even blink. Luffy’s legs and lower back were covered by a blanket, but the majority of his back was in plain view. A brand stood out against the pale skin. The marine tilted forward and steadied himself with his hands on the edge of the bed. This couldn’t be real. It had to have been a joke. His head turned towards the doctor, eyes silently begging for her to laugh. She clutched her clipboard closer to her chest as she looked away.

He ran one hand over his face as a million thoughts and ideas raced through his head. The most prominent one being a consistent stream of curses followed by half-baked plans. Taking a deep breath, he looked straight at the doctor.

“Okay. You never saw any marks. Make sure to keep a shirt on him at all times. Is he able to sleep on his back?” A quick nod was all the affirmation he needed. “Good. Do that then. And do not, under any circumstance, let anyone else on this ship so much as look at his wounds. You did not write anything about this down correct? Good.” Garp turned to leave but froze before he opened the door. “I already failed my family once, I won’t do it again.”

As much as he wanted to, Garp couldn’t even pretend he thought up a decent plan for what to do with Luffy. With a resigned sigh he decided to go to the only place he could. The only island he deemed safe enough to raise the son of one of the most dangerous men. What harm could one more highly wanted child bring?

 

It took a month to get to Fuusha but it was the only place Garp could think of going to hide Luffy. A former slave and the son of the most wanted man in the world? Like the marines would pass up on that execution. Garp believed the marines protected the innocent, but he also realized the horrifying fact that the children of wanted men did not fall under their protection.

“We should be able to dock within ten minutes, sir!” One of his men called from the front of the ship. Garp nodded and headed to the infirmary where a certain child laid.

“Luffy, it’s time to go,” Garp called from the entrance of the room. He knew better than to try to shake the kid awake. The first time he attempted it he was punched in the face as Luffy moved as far away as possible. Any attempt Garp made at getting closer to the boy was shot down. No amount of food or stories could get the kid to utter a word. Honestly, he didn’t even know if Luffy could talk. The second Garp started talking, Luffy jolted straight up with a look of panic on his face.

It settled as soon as he noticed the other presence in the room, but his heart was still beating quickly after being addressed so suddenly. Luffy glared at the man with his guard up as they made their way from the infirmary to the deck. He couldn’t trust these people. They haven’t hurt him so far but that doesn’t mean they won’t. They hadn't allowed him to wander or interact with anyone besides Garp and the doctor.

Once he was at the railing overlooking the sea, his mouth fell open. It was his first time seeing the sea. During the entire trip Garp- the man claiming to be his grandfather- had not allowed him out of the infirmary. Luffy didn’t know why, but it was hard to miss the looks of pity the man gave him every time they were in the same room. The water was a clear, sparkling blue. Waves lapped gently against the ship’s hull as marines scrambled around. Everything was so…calm. It was enchanting. It was free.

The Boa sisters had told him stories about the ocean but no words could truly describe what he was seeing. It was like he was being pulled towards it. His knuckles tightened on the rail. This is where he was meant to be. Luffy closed his eyes and tilted his head slightly back, taking a deep breath of the salty air. It was the first time he had felt at peace in a while.

“You’re a fan of the ocean, are ya?” Garp had a small smile on his face. Luffy turned his head to look at the man next to him and nodded. “You’ll have plenty of time to look at it later. Right now, I have someone I want you to meet.” The older man walked down the plank towards the small village, occasionally checking to make sure Luffy was following him. A short walk led the pair to a building with a sign on it. Luffy had no idea what the sign said, but it felt cozy. Garp pushed open the door in front of him and walked inside.

“Ah! Garp! I wasn’t expecting you this early in the year. You don’t normally visit until the winter.” A green haired lady with a yellow bandana called from behind the counter. She wiped her hands on a small rag before coming to meet her visitors. The marine laughed as he sat in one of the chairs.

“Well you know how it is, Makino. Actually, though, I’m here for personal business.” Makino’s eyebrows rose in surprise. Normally Garp only visited his hometown to resupply his stash of sake before heading to the mountains to do god knows what. She was going to question him when a flicker of movement to the side caught her attention.

“I don’t suppose your ‘business’ has anything to do with this little one, does it?” Makino gracefully kneeled down to be eye level with the silent child. “Hi. My name’s Makino.” She smiled and gently rubbed the top of his hair.

Luffy stared at the woman with wide eyes, then tilted his head in confusion. She seemed warm. Unlike the Celestial Dragons, Makino’s touch was soft and didn’t hurt. When she removed her hand in order to sit across from Garp he stared after her. The two talked for a while with hushed tones before Makino looked upset. She sighed, nodded, and said a couple things to Garp before he stood up with a sad smile.

“Thank you. I’m sorry to force this situation upon you but I didn’t know where else to take him.”

“Oh, hush. You’re not forcing anything on me or this village Garp. I wouldn’t want you to take him to any other island. You know as well as I do that this is one of the most peaceful areas. It’s the perfect place to try to get him to open up a little more.” The marine smiled and left after speaking a little more with the barmaid. Once he was gone, Makino stood in front of Luffy again. “It looks like we’re going to have some time to get to know each other. Would you like a snack?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello my lovely readers! Sorry I haven't updated in so long but on the bright side...I'm no longer in high school! Hopefully I'll be able to update a lot more over the summer. This chapter is a little short but I thought it would be the perfect ending spot. Luffy is with Makino! A certain infamous pirate isn't far behind, either. I wanted to ask y'all what you would want to read next. Do you want me to cover Luffy's entire childhood or should I just cover the important bits and pieces? There are certain areas I want to cover with Ace and Sabo but I was going to cover a lot of it in flashbacks later on in the story. If you have any other ideas let me know! I'm winging most of this so any advice or input is greatly appreciated! Also: No, Luffy is not going to be significantly stronger than he is in canon. He will be slightly different due to his new past but he will not be able to beat up a sea king as a seven year old. Thanks for reading and please comment!


	6. Chapter 5

Makino sighed as she started to get Party’s Bar ready for the day. Luffy was still asleep in the room she managed to clean up for him to use. It wasn’t that Luffy was too much for the young barmaid to handle, actually it was the opposite. He hadn’t spoken a word in the two weeks he’s been under her care. He hadn’t broken anything, either, and helped clean the glasses the customers used every day. The most concerning part was that he hadn’t made any friends yet. While there weren’t that many kids in Fuusha Village, there were more than enough for the boy to play with. Although, it’s rather hard to make friends when you don’t talk… She shook her head and stood up as she noticed someone entered the room.

“Ah! Good morning Luffy! Are you going to go out and play today?” No response. “You can leave whenever you want, but I always appreciate your help if you’d rather stay here today.” Luffy nodded, relaxing slightly, before he walked behind the counter to stand next to her. The door opened, causing Makino to turn around with her usual smile.

“Welcome! How can I-Shanks!” She set down the plate she was drying in order to rush around the counter towards the red haired man. The second she was close enough she jumped forward to wrap him into a hug. “You didn’t say you were going to visit so soon!” The rest of the Red Hair Pirates filtered into the bar and took seats at the tables. Luffy began to pull glasses down from the shelf before lining them up for Makino to fill.

“Of course! How could we stay away from our favorite village for very long?” Shanks laughed as he sat at one of the stools by the counter. As the pirates began to talk and laugh amongst themselves, with Makino distributing sake to each table, Shanks finally noticed the other person present. “Oh? I didn’t know you had a kid, Makino.” Said woman turned around with a playful glare.

“Jeeze Shanks…You were here a little more than a year ago. That’s Luffy. Garp asked me to take care of him.” Shanks’ eyebrow rose. He stared at the small child in front of him.

“It’s nice to meet ya, Luffy!” Despite the wide grin that appeared on the man’s face, Luffy glared in response and backed away slightly. Some of the crew called out that their captain was bad with kids but Shanks just laughed while calling for more drinks.

Makino giggled at the antics. She finished refilling all their cups when the door swung open once more. A man wearing rugged clothes walked in accompanied by four similarly dressed men. He walked straight up to the counter, making Luffy shuffle behind Makino to hide. These men felt familiar. They were like the guards. Something about the way they carried themselves screamed danger.

The leader, Higuma, leaned one arm on the counter. He wanted to buy some sake. It was a normal request, especially since they were in a bar. There was only one small problem. The pirate crew had just bought the last of it. Twenty men drinking all the sake of a small bar in a small village in East Blue? Likely to happen. Makino tried to explain the situation peacefully when Higuma slammed his fist down.

“Now, now. There’s no need to cause such a ruckus for Makino here. It’s my crew’s fault we bought it all. There’s still a few unopened bottles, though, so how ‘bout it?” It seemed like Higuma was going to accept the offer. He stood up and walked closer to the pirate. Luffy watched in shock as Higuma pulled the short sword on his hip out of its sheath and broke the bottle Shanks had held up. Sake dripped from his red hair.

The rest of his crew laughed. Luffy watched them curiously. Did they not think the mountain bandit was threatening? He just disrespected their captain. The Boa sisters mentioned how pirates treated their crew like family, yet these guys were just laughing. He couldn’t give it anymore thought as Higuma’s sword came flying towards Makino.

He reacted on instinct. This swing was a lot slower and less desperate than those he was used to from his fights. Those were kill or be killed. He grabbed Makino’s wrist and yanked her down. The sudden movement caused the woman to stumble and land on the floor next to him. A second later the sword swung across the back wall and slashed the remaining bottles. Makino covered Luffy from the liquid and glass that sprayed down from the shelves above them. She glanced at Luffy and made sure none of the glass hit him.

Luffy was surprised. He only helped Makino because she had fed him every day and never forced him to do anything. He didn’t expect her to protect him.

“Thank god you’re not hurt,” she breathed out. Luffy gently put his hand on her cheek where some of the glass nicked her. “Hmm? Oh, it’s just a scratch. It’s not even bleeding that much. See?” True to her words, the small cut had already stopped bleeding. The pair stood up just as the mountain bandits were walking out of the door.

“Sorry about the mess, Makino. I’ll help you clean it up.” The barmaid refused the pirate’s offer, insisting he enjoyed himself. He ignored her and began to pick up some of the shards from the floor when Makino claimed she would never talk to him again if he helped. Shanks chuckled and held his hands up in surrender. “Alright, alright…But that kid over there better get the same rules.”

Luffy glanced up at Makino with eyes wide like he was caught stealing a piece of candy before dinner. With the claim she wouldn’t allow him to help her anymore, Luffy dropped the glass and ran around the counter to sit at one of the stools. He liked to help at the bar. Few people came in at the same time and there was always a relaxed atmosphere. While Makino was busy cleaning, Shanks turned his attention to Luffy. All of his attempts to get the boy to talk were in vain.

The boy was distracted from keeping his guard up, however, when he noticed an open chest. Curiosity got the best of him as he pulled it closer to himself to see its contents better. His breath hitched when he noticed the swirls on the fruit. Shanks saw the opening. What could be more interesting to a kid than a mythical fruit?

“Interested in that? It’s a devil fruit. Benn found it a while ago and Lucky Roo is trying to figure out which one it is. They give powers to those who eat them.” Luffy made a face of disgust. “Yeah they do taste pretty bad from what I’ve heard. Wait…How did you know that? Have you eaten one?”

He didn’t want to lie to the man who seemed close to Makino, but Luffy had no idea if he was trustworthy. He looked over at Makino and was met with a supportive nod. Even if they were significantly older than the boy, she thought it wouldn’t hurt for him to try to connect with others. Shanks would never do anything to hurt him. Luffy turned back towards the pirate and gave a quick nod.

Shanks was impressed but concerned. The kid next to him couldn’t have been older than five, with how short he was and the fact he couldn’t talk, yet he had already lost his ability to swim. Luffy wasn’t bursting into flames or melting into a puddle, though, so he figured the kid had pretty decent control over his powers. Something seemed off though. He couldn’t figure out what it was but he knew there was more to it than the kid was letting on.

“So, Luffy. Have you heard stories about pirates?” An excited nod was accompanied with eyes that practically shone with excitement. Hancock and her sisters told him a lot about the Kuja pirates.

“Free...” If Shanks wasn’t already paying attention to Luffy he would have missed the single word the boy practically whispered. None of his men who were drinking at the tables behind him noticed. Makino, however, froze where she was cleaning the counter. Her mouth fell slightly open in surprise. During the time she’s been his main care provider, Luffy hadn’t spoken once. Tears pricked the corners of her eyes as she quickly looked down to her rag and continued cleaning. As happy as she was that Luffy had talked, she didn’t want to say anything about it and risk forcing the boy back into his shell of silence.

Shanks had a similar train of thought. He noticed Makino’s reaction and was able to conclude that the boy rarely, if ever, spoke. If the barmaid deemed the correct course of action to be not making a major deal out of it then he would follow suit.

“That’s right. Pirates are free. We can go where we want, do what we want, and no one can tell us otherwise! Do you know about the Pirate King though?” The boy tilted his head to the side with a look of confusion. Shanks gasped in mock horror. “What? You haven’t? I guess I’ll have to tell you all about him then! You see, the Pirate King had more freedom than anyone else on the sea.”

The next few hours were spent with Makino tending to the rest of the crew while Shanks held the attention of a certain raven haired boy. When it was time for the bar to close, Shanks bid the pair farewell as the Red Hair Pirates left to make one more run around East Blue. He promised Luffy he would stop by once more before he had to head back to the Grandline. Luffy was sad but said nothing as he and Makino sent them off from the docks.

About a month had passed when Luffy was helping set up Party’s Bar. He pushed the last chair in place and looked around. Everything seemed ready for the day. The front door swung open as a handful of men walked in. Makino cringed slightly as she noticed her customers. She was hoping Higuma and the rest of the bandits would go somewhere else but lo and behold, here they were.

“Oh? Those cowardly pirates aren’t here? Ha! I bet they were scared of facing a man with an eight million beli bounty!” The group laughed as their leader walked towards the counter. Luffy glared at him. He didn’t think this mountain bandit was stronger than Shanks at all. He knew the pirate didn’t fight back because it wasn’t worth it. Luffy had seen the same thing happen when he was a slave.

_Luffy was a few days into his enslavement when Sandersonia was roughly thrown against the wall of their cell. Her body was covered in bruises and still bleeding wounds. He was confused. Why had she let the guard beat her? She hadn’t even gone against their orders or anything. It wasn’t fair. Marigold patted the boys head before she continued to help her sister._

_“Don’t have that look on your face. You know that if she fights back they will only hurt her more. Besides, she’s better than them anyways.” The statement was supposed to help him understand but it only confused him more. Obviously Sandersonia was better. She didn’t needlessly hurt people like they did. Hancock sighed._

_“What she means is that Sandersonia didn’t fight back because there was no reason to fight. Even if she did retaliate- sorry, attack him- nothing would have changed. She would have just wasted energy. Back on Amazon Lily we were raised to only fight for a good cause.” Luffy nodded. It made more sense but he still couldn’t wrap his head around the idea._

Higuma was about to demand all the sake in the bar when he noticed the kid. Correction: He noticed the brat that was staring at him. He narrowed his eyes.

“What are you looking at, boy? Mad that I insulted those filthy pirates?” Luffy frowned. The mountain bandit was annoying. “Oi. Who do you think I am? I’m warning you kid.” He kept glaring, ignoring the way Higuma smirked. “Fine. Have it your way.” The man snapped his fingers and the two men closest to Luffy grabbed him by the arms. Luffy kicked and wiggled but was at a disadvantage after being held off the ground.

As he was carried out of the bar, he saw Makino exit behind them and run off in the opposite direction. At least she’s safe. He pushed aside the small burst of hurt he felt at seeing the one person he trusted in the village abandon him. Makino wasn’t a fighter, she wouldn’t stand a chance against these guys. Luffy continued to struggle until he managed to land a successful kick in one of the men’s sides. The man let go of the arm he was holding in favor of nursing his ribs. Chance! A quick hit to the back of the second man’s neck with his newly freed hand led to Luffy falling towards the ground. Neither man was down for the count so he had to move fast.

His fall was the picture perfect image of grace. Complete with flailing limbs. And a faceplant onto the stone pavement. In any case, he wasn’t being held in midair anymore. Luckily the trip aided by gravity wasn’t far enough for him to break anything or cause any significant injuries. Luffy pushed himself up and made it a few steps away from the men who carried him when he fell down. Again. Luffy sighed in frustration. It seems like his first friend would be none other than the beautiful ground. How wonderful.

“You seriously thought you could escape? As if.” Higuma ground the sole of his shoe on Luffy’s cheek. He laughed at the look of pain on the boy’s face. Whatever the mountain bandit was going to say was cut off by the appearance of two new people.

“L-Let that child go! We’ll give you however much you want just don’t hurt him,” the mayor panted. Makino stood beside him, looking just as winded, without her usual bandana. Luffy couldn’t help the small smile that spread across his lips. Makino didn’t leave him. She was getting help. No one had ever gone to such lengths for him before.

“Like this puny village has enough money for me and my men. Don’t worry. We’re just going to teach him a little…lesson.” Panicked whispers spread through the small crowd that surrounded them.

“I was wondering why there was no one to greet us at the port. What’s going on? Some sort of festival?” Another person approached the group, the crowd parting to let him through. The first thing Luffy noticed was the straw hat and red hair of the man. Shanks must’ve just gotten back from his last trip. “Oh? What do we have here?”

“Well if it isn’t the cowardly pirates from before! Are you gonna get mad at me for insulting you like this brat here?” Higuma punctuated his sentence by putting more pressure onto Luffy’s skull. Shanks’ eyes narrowed at the harsh treatment. He knew Luffy didn’t talk that much, but the kid must’ve done something to anger the man after his crew was insulted. Shanks smirked. He may have only known Luffy for a day but he liked the kid already.

“You can pour drinks on me, you can throw food at me, you can even spit on me. I’ll just laugh it off. But good reason or not, nobody hurts a friend of mine.” Luffy stared at the pirate captain in shock. Friends? They were friends? The last friends he had were the Boa sisters. Shanks and the rest of the crew looked ready to attack on his behalf. None of the men had drawn their weapons, but they were all tense and able to spring into action at a moment’s notice.

Shanks, of course, stood in the front. He was flanked by Benn and Lucky Roo with Rockstar, Yasopp, and the rest close behind. Their strength practically radiated off of them. Higuma was either too oblivious or too stupid to realize the pirates could beat him in mere seconds.

“Like you could beat a man with a bounty as high as mine. But don’t worry. We won’t be harming a hair on this brat’s head. They sell for a higher price if they’re uninjured. We want to get as much as we can from the nobles for him,” Higuma laughed. Luffy stopped struggling as he processed those words. Sell? Nobles? They were going to make him a slave again. No. No way. No no _no._ He couldn’t go back there. He didn’t want to lose his freedom. He had finally escaped and now they’re going to force him to go back.

His body began to shake, eyes wide in fear. A faint sense of heat registered in the back of Luffy’s mind but he paid no attention to it. The only things he could think about were his memories from when he was the slave of that Celestial Dragon.

To say Shanks was surprised would be an understatement. Luffy said he had eaten a devil fruit (read: nodded when Shanks asked) but the red haired captain had no idea what kind it was. Until now, anyways. He watched as the kid’s skin turned slightly redder, eyes became black, tail sprouted from his back, and horns popped up from his forehead. Luffy began to claw at Higuma’s leg with his fingernails, which were a little longer, sharper, and black. The mountain bandit screamed in fear. The kid was far from normal. Some of the townspeople backed away.

“Benn.” The first mate nodded and began to incapacitate the rest of the mountain bandits as Shanks rushed towards their leader. He drew his sword from its sheath and quickly ran it through Higuma’s heart. The man wouldn’t be able to hurt Luffy but Shanks didn’t want to let someone as horrible as him take the chance to escape. As soon as he pulled his sword out of the man he turned all of his attention to Luffy, who looked like a caged animal.

Luffy was taking rapid breaths and shaking. He eyed the villagers like they were prey and looked ready to lunge at them. Shanks slowly walked over to him. He started to reach towards Luffy when claws jutted out. While his hand was able to avoid any injuries, his chest was another problem. It wasn’t a deadly wound but it was rather deep. Just enough to scar. Shanks sighed and pulled the boy to him. He was already hit once, what more could happen?

He managed to pin Luffy’s arms to his sides. The tail was quickly flicking back and forth, not hiding its owner’s anger or fear at all. A low growl escaped Luffy’s throat as he fought his captor. He couldn’t let them enslave him. Never again.

“Luffy. Luffy it’s me, Shanks. Relax. No one is taking you. You’re free. You won’t be a slave again. You only have to do what you want to. Relax for me, okay?” Shanks may not have known everything about the kid he was trying to calm but he’d seen enough throughout his life to know what a former slave looked like. He was sure if he searched Luffy he would find a certain brand on him.

As he kept muttering soothing words, Luffy finally managed to notice his surroundings again. He wasn’t being pushed into the ground anymore. The soft fabric against his cheek led him to assume he was being held against someone. They were trying to help him, not sell him. He took a deep breath and stopped resisting.

A few minutes passed before he gently pushed himself away from the person holding him. It was Shanks, his first friend outside of the cells. He stood up and faced Shanks before bowing. The pirate had prevented him from indiscriminately harming the villagers like he had done to the guards the day he escaped. Shanks simply chuckled and rubbed his hair.

“Friends help each other, yeah?”

 

It had been a few days since the bandit incident. Shanks’ chest was stitched up by his doctor. Luffy was unable to look him in the eye until Shanks had claimed he was perfectly fine and slapped his wound. As soon as Luffy left with a relieved smile to help Makino, Shanks had to get his stitches redone. It honestly didn’t hurt the man. He was used to these types of injuries and it was worth it to help the boy before he hurt someone he didn’t mean to.

The Red Hair Pirates were going to leave for good to head back to the Grand Line. All of the villagers were at the port to see them off, though they kept a wide berth away from the child who ate a devil fruit. They saw how he acted and were scared of him. If Shanks hadn’t been there at least one of the villagers would have been killed.

The pirate captain ignored them and stood in front of Luffy. He loved to tell the kid stories of his adventures on the sea. Luffy’s eyes would shine and he would hold his breath at the climax of the story. Shanks still remembered the first, and only, word Luffy had said to him. Free. With a smirk, he started talking.

“What’s your dream, kid?” Luffy stared at him in confusion. He thought about the words carefully before shooting the man a small smile. His eyes were clear.

“Pi’te King.” Shanks chuckled. He knew what Luffy would say. The boy loved the stories he told of his old captain, the previous Pirate King, the most.

“Pirate King, huh?” Shanks fondly placed a hand on his hat. “I guess we’ll see you at sea then. Can you promise me something, Luffy?” Luffy nodded as Shanks removed his hat. “Keep my hat safe for me. Promise that you’ll give it back to me someday…When you’ve become a great pirate.”

With those parting words, Shanks boarded his ship and left Fuusha Village. His head felt empty but his mind was filled with hope for how Luffy would shape the new era.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This basically wrote itself. Mostly because I live for Shanks and Luffy meeting and have had the scene planned out since the beginning... Shanks assumes Luffy is younger than he actually is because of how small Luffy is. Also, to those of you who commented suggestions or anything really: Thanks! Y'all have no idea how much you motivated me to update. And you gave me some ideas that will just make this story even better. Stay tuned, my lovely readers, for the next chapter!


	7. Chapter 6

Shanks had left but Luffy still had his straw hat to remember him by. He thought of the promise made between them every time he had to push the hat up so he could see. A smile spread across his lips as he pulled his sandals on and rushed down the stairs to where Makino was setting up for the day.

Since his encounter with the pirates, and the event where he learned Shanks thought of him as a friend, Luffy had been more open. Makino chuckled as the boy quickly pulled down the chairs while looking out of the window every few seconds. The incident where he had been forcibly taken into the town hadn’t dissuaded him from wanting to explore. If anything, it was the reason he even developed an interest in the rest of Fuusha.

“Luffy? Can you do me a favor?” Makino grabbed a piece of paper and pencil from a drawer behind the bar. “Would you mind running to the market for me? I’m running low on a few vegetables. If you don’t want to it’s fine.” His hair covered his eyes as he tilted his head down to stare at the floor. He wanted to go see the rest of the town, but truthfully he was scared. He still wasn’t quite used to being around new people all the time. Even when Shanks visited he only met a couple of the crewmembers.

From what he could remember, he was only around a handful of people his whole life. There was the Boa sisters, the guards, the Celestial Dragon, Garp, and the marine nurse. That isn’t even a quarter of Fuusha’s population.

A few moments of confliction passed before he looked at Makino with steady eyes and nodded. He could do it. He _wanted_ to do it. Makino smiled gently before holding out the paper and a small pouch of coins.

“Are you sure? If you give this to George, he sells vegetables, and hand him the pouch I’m sure he’ll give you what you need. This way you won’t have to talk. You really don’t have to do this, though.” Luffy shook his head, holding out his hand to grab the items.

Fuusha was a relatively small town. There was only the docks, Party’s Bar, the market, a restaurant, and the homes of the villagers. The windmill they were named after stood proud on the outskirts of town. Luffy stiffly left the bar and walked down the trail that led to his destination, according to Makino. It took barely five minutes for the stands of the villagers selling their goods to come into view. After taking a deep breath, he walked into the market. The stalls all sold various things. Some sold fish, others meat or bread, and one even had different kinds of toys and candy. Luffy didn’t pay any attention to the villagers as he looked for someone with a lot of green food set on display. That’s what vegetables were right? He told Makino he would get what she needed. She never forced him to do anything so it was relieving to be able to help her whenever he could. That is, until something flew into his back.

He fell forward in surprise. What happened? Was that a rock? Why would there be a- Another one hit the back of his head. Blood trickled down from where the sharp rock had cut him, dripping onto the collar of his shirt. Confused, Luffy turned around to see why it was raining rocks. He might not know much but even then he was pretty sure rocks didn’t hit someone in the head for no reason. His eyes widened at the site before him. The adults were standing in small groups, whispering to each other and looking at him in disgust.

Some of the kids, however, had more courage. Their leader was a boy in his early teens with hair so light it looked white in the sun. He sneered at Luffy while throwing a rock into the air and catching it.

“What’s a monster like you doing here?” The rest of the kids laughed. “You’re an eyesore! Why don’t you just die already!” The rock in his hand was whipped towards Luffy, who was still on the ground. The raven haired child was too shocked to dodge. His hand covered his nose as he tried to stop the blood that gushed from it. Some of the others picked up rocks from the ground and threw them. One grabbed a glass bottle from a nearby seller.

Luffy stood up and looked around frantically. The kids had formed a circle around him. He needed to leave. By now, the adults had begun talking louder. Their voices added to the confusion surrounding him as Luffy tried to find a way out.

“He’s a demon.”

“I hope he dies.”

“Disgusting.”

“I pity the thing that gave birth to him.”

“He should’ve never been born.”

“Spawn of the devil.”

Tears pricked at the corners of his eyes. They remained unshed. If he cried now they would only hurt him more. He learned that the hard way as a slave. More rocks poured down on him. A bottle broke on his shoulder and the glass cut into him. Someone punched his cheek with enough force to send him flying into the ring of people attacking him.

Luffy managed to push everyone away enough for him to run. The villagers’ voices followed him as he sprinted towards the path that led him to back to Makino. Monster. Demon. Evil. He pushed open the door to the bar.

“Oh, you’re back alrea-” Her smile fell when she saw the blood and bruises. “Oh no…Luffy come here!” She quickly flipped the sign at the entrance to ‘closed’ and ushered Luffy to the bathroom.

“Sor, ‘kino...” Luffy whispered as she cleaned his cuts and wrapped bandages around the gash on his shoulder.

“Monkey D. Luffy don’t you dare apologize. You and I both know you did nothing wrong,” she gently scolded him. “Now, I know it’s still early but I want you to wash up and then sleep. Okay?” She smiled warmly after he nodded.

Shaking hands pulled Luffy’s sheets up to his chin as Makino kissed his forehead. She silently left the room to go back down to the bar.

Makino sighed and rested her head in her hands as she sat at the counter. Trying to clean up would just end in disaster right now. A tear fell as she thought about the events of the past hour. Deep down, she knew that Luffy wouldn’t be able to stay in Fuusha. The second she saw his appearance change, she knew. As innocent and helpful as he was, once the rest of the villagers had seen his devil fruit transformation his fate was set. Sure, the villagers could be cruel. But they were a small town and devil fruits were nothing more than a myth in the East Blue. This morning proved it. They couldn’t handle those who were too different from them.

Wiping the water off of her cheeks, Makino stood up and grabbed her den den mushi. There was one person she could rely on right now. One person she could call to be there asap.

 

Two weeks. That was all the time it took for Garp to leave Marine HQ and reach Fuusha. Yes his men were exhausted. Yes they couldn’t even get off the boat. Yes they needed to train more. Garp huffed as he walked towards the bar. This is what they got for being weak new recruits when he had places to be. They only had to fight eight or so sea kings in the past few days. It was a piece of cake.

The sight he was greeted with once he opened the door was startling. No customers was one thing. It was morning so most of the village would be busy working not drinking. A bloody grandson was a different story.

Garp stared at the pair as Makino finished whipping the blood from Luffy’s face and moved on to wrap his injuries.

“Oh! You’re here Garp,” Makino said as she turned around.

“What…What happened?” Garp questioned as he sank into the nearest chair. All she had said during the call was that she needed his help. He wasn’t expecting to see Luffy beat up.

“Your grandfather and I have to talk about some grown-up stuff. Would you mind running to the kitchen and grabbing the rice crackers for me?” Luffy nodded, hopping off the chair and walking out of the room. Makino sighed in relief before turning to look straight at Garp. “He can’t stay here. It’s too dangerous for him.”

“What?! Why? I doubt he talks back or is rude. I thought you loved having him here?” He slammed his fist down onto the table, cracking it slightly.

“I love Luffy like he’s my own son, but my feelings are completely irrelevant right now. As much as I treasure him I won’t force him to grow up here. You saw the cuts on him. Those weren’t made on accident, Garp.”

“What do you mean? He couldn't have...Did he do it to himself?” Makino look down at her lap, face grim as she shook her head.

“They saw his devil fruit. Some bandits grabbed him and threatened to sell him. Now, everyone but Mayor Woop Slap and I are terrified of him. The names they called him…Every time they see him it’s…It's getting worse.” Garp tried to process what she said. A devil fruit? But he was only seven! There weren’t any devil fruits in East Blue, most people who had them made way for the Grand Line. The only place he could’ve gotten one is...He pushed the thought away. It happened in the past so there was no use thinking about it now.

“Just keep him inside then! He doesn’t need to go outside for anything.” A teary glare was sent at the older man. He may be a vice admiral but he crumpled in on himself with guilt within seconds.

“And take away his freedom? He _wants_ to leave. He _wants_ to make friends. I _can’t_ do anything to get in his way.” The kitchen door swung open. Black, fluffy hair popped into view. The tray carrying snacks nearly tilted over as Luffy tried to carefully bring them food. Makino smiled and ruffled his hair the second the tray was placed safely on the table.

Garp stared at the boy in front of him. He wanted friends? That’d be impossible in Fuusha. At least, for now. None of the villagers would befriend him if they knew he had powers. They would only see him as a being that shouldn’t exist. And, considering the fact that said boy had fresh injuries, they weren’t likely to forget anytime soon. He was taken from one cage to another. Garp picked up a rice cracker and slowly chewed it. There was one place he could take Luffy. But he wasn’t sure it would help.

“Luffy,” the boy looked straight into his grandfather’s eyes as he was called “What do you think about living in the forest?”

 

The trek up the mountain wasn’t that long. It should’ve taken an hour or two max. That is, if a certain seven year old stopped attracting all the predators of the forest. It wasn’t like he was trying. The animals just seemed to instinctively know he was easy prey. One glare from the marine and they were gone. It was late afternoon when the pair finally reached their destination: an old, wooden shack. Garp banged on the door of the building. Muffled angry threats were heard from inside.

“What do you want?” A tall woman with curly orange hair asked gruffly. She didn’t have time for this. She had to make sure the fire was ready to cook the meat that was going to come any minute.

“Is that any way to talk to an old friend, Dadan?” The woman paled. She only saw Garp when he brought her more problems. Without any other words of greeting, he kept talking. “You’re going to look after my grandson from now on.”

“I’m what?! You already forced that other monster onto me! I’m not looking after a second one of those brats!” Dadan recovered enough from her shock to respond. A few pieces of blackmail later and Garp was heading back down the mountain. He couldn’t stay on the island for too long or else Sengoku would get suspicious.

“Listen to your new brother!” Luffy stared after Garp in confusion. Was he supposed to stay here? What about Makino? A brother? He had so many questions but the source of his answers was leaving. “And don’t make him clean up after you or your bandits, Dadan!”

Luffy looked at the woman in front of him. She was, apparently, a bandit. Bandits were bad. They insulted Shanks and wanted to sell him. He glared at her only to be scoffed at.

“Give me a break. If you think that glare of yours is going to scare me then you’ve got another thing coming punk. That brother of yours is a way bigger monster than you.” His glare dropped as he heard that word again. What was a brother? How was he supposed to have one of them if he didn’t have the faintest clue what one was? Before more thought could be put into the topic, the bushes behind him began to rustle. He turned around to see what was approaching, missing the look of relief that crossed the woman's face. She dealt with one angry, problem child long enough to be able to fake her composure. 

A figure stepped out. It was a child slightly older than he was. They were dragging the dead body of a large bear behind them. One they noticed Luffy they stopped. The setting sun cast dark shadows across the boy’s face as he stared at Luffy who blinked in response. He was used to seeing harsh glares.

“Ace, hurry up and bring that food in here. We don’t have all night.” The boy glanced at Dadan to signify he heard her before looking back at Luffy. Something seemed off about the younger kid but he couldn’t tell exactly what it was. All of his senses were screaming at him that the boy in front of him was dangerous. But that couldn’t be true. The boy was scrawny. His arms and legs were practically twigs. The straw hat perched on his head was too big and only made him look even smaller. Yet, Ace froze as the boy looked straight into his eyes. They looked just like the ones he saw when he looked at his reflection in the water.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to thank all of you lovely readers for reading this! Seeing as how this is an AU I'm going to be straying from canon and making new events happen. If you have an idea that you think would be interesting let me know. I'll find some way to add it or, at the very least, modify it slightly to fit. There's no set outline for this so please comment and let me know your thoughts so I can improve! And yes, right now Ace is on edge around little Luffy. Next chapter is going to focus on our special little trio so stay tuned!


	8. Chapter 7

Birds were chirping. Tree leaves fluttered innocently as they were shaken slightly by the wind. A butterfly flew around his head, causing Ace to wildly flail his arms around to rid himself of the unwelcome distraction. He huffed at the peaceful forest around him because _of course_ it was peaceful when the situation he was in was the exact opposite. The kid following him was, surprisingly, managing to keep pace. For someone so small- too small, his mind interjected- the gap between them remained consistent.

That is, until Ace knocks down a tree and sends it rolling towards the smaller boy. He doesn’t watch to make sure it makes contact. Instead, he turns around and sprints towards his destination.

It’s dark when he gets back, only to see the bandits already eating. The bones of the now consumed animal are smaller than what he normally catches but that doesn’t answer the question flying around his head: How? For the entire ten years of his life, Ace can’t remember a single time where Dadan or any of her men caught an animal larger than your average rabbit or fish. Despite the forest being home to larger than normal animals, the bandits were more suited to stealing food from High Town than hunting.

“You’re finally back, Ace? Took you long enough. Luffy came back a while ago with this boar in tow. Here,” Dadan said as she passed Ace a small bowl filled with a single scoop of rice. “You know the drill. No catches means no food.” Normally he would have protested, but he had already roasted some fish with Sabo. He sat away from Luffy, making a point to not look in his general direction.

Three weeks showed that Luffy was more persistent than Ace thought. He hadn’t said a word to the kid yet he was still followed every. Single. Day. It was annoying. And, worst of all, Luffy managed to follow him farther each day. They were nearly at the tree the pirate fund was hidden in. He couldn’t let anyone else find the treasure he hid with Sabo.

Ace turned left behind a tree, stopped, spun around, and waited. Thirteen seconds passed before Luffy followed suit. And ran straight into Ace. He bounced off the older boy only to land on the ground with a soft thud. As he stood up, Luffy noticed that Ace was glaring at him. Still. He tilted his head to the side. It was almost like Ace’s face was permanently stuck in a look of hate.

“Why do you follow me every day? You’re such a nuisance!” Ace screamed as he tried to look as intimidating as a freckled covered kid could look.

Luffy stared at the dots on Ace’s face. He’s never seen those before. Wait. Ace was talking to him. Garp told him to listen to his new ‘brother’, whatever that meant. He blinked and looked at the older kid in front of him. Who was mad. And clenching his teeth together. Was Ace angry he wasn’t paying attention?

Ace took a step forward. This was the closest he had ever been to Ace. If the younger raven haired boy thought he was confused before then sweet lord was he wrong. As soon as Ace grabbed him by the shirt and lifted him off the ground Luffy almost stopped breathing. He didn’t realize he made Ace this mad. Before, as long as he was quiet and looked at the guard when he was supposed to it was fine.

“What? Too scared to even answer my question? Can you even talk?” Their faces were close. Luffy could feel the other’s anger radiate off him in waves. What was he supposed to do right now? Which question was he supposed to answer? More importantly, _what_ would even _be_ the right answer? “Whatever! Just leave me alone,” Ace growled. His left arm tightened it’s grip on Luffy’s shirt as his right swung back. Luffy flew backwards and slammed into a nearby tree once Ace’s fist made contact with his eye.

The older of the two froze as he saw Luffy collide with the tree. Oh god. He didn’t mean to actually _punch_ the kid. He already saw how skinny Luffy was. Already knew the kid was younger than him. Sure, he tried to kill Luffy before by throwing him off the bridge or rolling tree trunks towards him, but he didn’t really _mean_ to kill him. He’s never killed someone before! Before Ace could get any farther in his musings, Luffy stood up and dusted himself off.

Wait, what? Ace blinked. He rubbed his eyes and looked back at the scene before him. So…he wasn’t dead? Ace’s mouth opened and closed a few times. Forget dead, it was like Luffy didn’t feel anything. Ace was expecting him to, oh I don’t know, not move for a while or be scared or _something_. He didn’t, in any shape, way, or form, expect him to just stand up and look the same as he did before Ace literally punched him in the face.

Luffy stared at Ace. The older boy looked so confused. It was the first time he saw anything but anger and glares on Ace’s face. He wanted to celebrate the minor achievement but the pain from hitting the tree distracted him. He’s had worse injuries but anyone who says they enjoy being thrown into a tree is lying. Seeing as how Ace wasn’t mad anymore it must mean that throwing him into a tree was a good enough punishment. As Luffy adjusted the hat on his head, he smiled at Ace. Makino said it was always good to smile at people.

Apparently, as helpful and kind as Makino is, she can be wrong. Ace bolted. Aren't smiles supposed to make you friends? Maybe he did it wrong. None of the kids in Fuusha would give him the chance to smile. Luffy smacked his cheeks with his palms before nodding. He can't be discouraged that easily.

 

Nope. Nope nope nope. No way. Fuck it. He did _not_ sign up to deal with this today. Ace sprinted as fast as he could away from the situation. Away from Luffy. He may have been raised by bandits and have the social skills of a rock but even he knew that whatever… _that_ reaction was it wasn’t normal. At all. Who the fuck smiles at the person who just hit them? You’re supposed to fight back or cry or get mad. Not smile. No. There had to be something seriously wrong with this kid. And Ace, for one, was not going to stick around to find out.

He tripped over a root that was slightly sticking out of the dirt. As his face met the ground, he took a moment to pause. It didn’t sound like Luffy was chasing him. Good. He needed some time to think before facing him again. The sound of snapping branches grabbed his attention. Oh great. He jinxed himself.

“What are you doing?”

“Sabo,” Ace sighed in relief. Normally he would fight the blonde for his poorly hidden smirk but Ace was honestly just glad it wasn’t Luffy.

“That would happen to be my name. Now, why are you laying on the ground? I thought we were going to Edge Town today?” Sabo asked after watching his friend glance around.

“Y-Yeah. Edge Town. Right.” Ace stood up and rubbed the mud he felt smeared on his cheek. “Think we’ll be able to get some good pickings?”

 

Sabo sighed in frustration. It wasn’t the first time Ace wandered off in Edge Town, and it certainly wouldn’t be the last, but that didn’t make it any less annoying every time it happened. How were they supposed to raise their pirate fund when a certain hot head left him to do all the work? The sound of wood splitting and angry yelling drew his attention away from his musings. Well, at least it was always easy to find him… Shaking his head, Sabo walked into the run down bar a few feet ahead of him.

As soon as he swung the door open he was greeted with a very familiar sight. There was Ace. Walking over to a much larger man. Who was at least double their height. With a pipe in hand. Where did he even get that? They were just here to pickpocket. Sabo knew for a fact they didn’t enter Edge Town with any weapons. Wait, that’s not important right now. The more pressing matter was the fact that Ace had already begun talking.

“What would you do if…the Pirate King had a child?” His voice was barely more than a whisper but Sabo heard it loud and clear.

“A child?! Ha! That devil spawn would be hunted their entire life! I wouldn’t mind killing it myself.” As much as Sabo wanted to stop the man, or at least get Ace to leave, he couldn’t. It was a repetitive cycle but Sabo knew he had no right to stop him. After all, he hadn’t even told Ace about the fact he was originally a noble. Would Ace even want him to interfere? Sure, they hunted together and practically talked only to each other, but that doesn’t mean he should get in the way. Ace had been doing this for years with the same results. Whoever he asked would insult Roger and anyone with blood relations to the man before Ace attacked.

Like right now. The pipe collided with the older man’s temple followed by a sickening crack. Something probably broke. It was most likely his sanity seeing as how he ordered those with him to go after a child. Sabo grabbed the broken leg of a chair before using it to hit one of them behind the knees.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw another armed with a knife aiming for Ace’s back. He couldn’t even get a warning out. The blade was too close. It was going to…not hit? Sabo ducked and moved to the right so two men missed him and collided.

Standing right behind Ace, and now holding the handle of the stolen knife, was a younger kid. Who? Is this the Luffy that Ace was talking about a couple days ago? Sabo grunted as the man he knocked down earlier cut his arm well enough to draw blood. This is what he gets for being distracted in a fight.

 

One black eye and a lot of cuts and bruises later the three boys found themselves back in the forest. Ace wiped the dry blood off his nose as it finished bleeding. He then turned to glare at the youngest in the group.

“How did you even get there? I thought I left you by the tree…” Ace crossed his arms as his glare intensified. No response. His eyebrow twitched. This kid wasn’t talking. Again. The least he could do is answer a single question.

“Oi. Calm down, Ace. He probably just followed you. Right?” Sabo glanced towards Luffy, only to be met with an enthusiastic nod. “See?”

“How could neither of us notice? We’re both used to being followed by animals. I’m sure one of us would’ve noticed before we got to the Grey Terminal.”

“You said he was quite right? We were probably both too distracted and didn’t pay attention to him.” Ace hummed in response. It wasn’t a satisfactory answer but it was better than anything he was thinking of.

“But that still doesn’t explain why he got involved in the fight! I could’ve handled them by myself! Unless he thinks I’m weak?” Luffy shook his head. At least he got an answer this time. “Then what? You just wanted to help beat those guys up?” A nod. Ace paused. “Wait, what?” Luffy pointed towards the direction they came from before looking at the two boys standing in front of him and frowning.

“Ummm…Are you saying you helped us because those guys were being mean to Ace?” A smile followed by a quick nod. “You do know Ace started the fight, yeah? Then why would you jump in?” It was silent for a few moments.

“-ge,” Luffy whispered. Ace and Sabo looked at one another, blinked, then turned back to Luffy.

“A what?” Sabo may be more educated than Ace but he was just as confused as his raven haired friend.

“Cage,” Luffy repeated as he pressed his hand to Ace’s chest, right on top of his heart. It wasn’t an explanation that needed words.

A tear fell from Ace’s eye as the single word echoed through his mind. He was living in a cage. Not one of metal bars or steel, but one made by his bloodline. A cage he couldn’t ignore. A cage he would never be able to escape from. A cage known only by Ace and the three people closest to him. A cage he thought no one would be able to understand. Until now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello my lovely readers! On the bright side I'm not dead (despite the fact I haven't updated in a while). If any of y'all follow me on twitter you'll know that I wanted to update last month but got sidetracked by two things: writers block and college. I moved into my dorm three days ago and its been so crazy. I wasn't sure if I liked how I wrote this chapter before but I think it flows better now. If you think of any ways I can improve this (or any other chapters) let me know! I'm always open to suggestions and want to thank Breezey and zoewinter1 for giving me advice and ideas! I'll update as often as possible but if it takes a while please know that it's just because I'm busy with school. I'm not putting this on hiatus so stay tuned for the next chapter!


	9. Chapter 8

Luffy wasn’t sure what changed to make Ace stop ignoring him but whatever it was he was thankful. Ace was so cool! And they were always with Sabo, too. Every day the two raven haired kids would leave early in the morning and meet Sabo at the tree the older two had hidden their pirate funds in. They’d all spend the rest of the day exploring the forest and hunting. Well…sort of hunting. Sabo and Ace worked together to bring down a crocodile or some other kind of animal while Luffy would veer off and find something of his own to kill. He had enough experience from his fights as a slave to manage this much.

The older two were always stunned after finishing their hunt and turning around to see Luffy sitting where they had left him with a kill of his own. It was a little smaller than theirs and they had been hunting since they were younger than him, or at least Ace has, but it was still weird since they never saw him actually fighting. Well, besides that time in Edge Town, anyways.

“Hey Ace…You’re not gonna keep going there and asking about…him are you?” Sabo asked as he picked up the end of the crocodile the beat. Despite his lack of clarification, Ace understood the question perfectly.

“I don’t ask about _him_ to start fights, you know. I just...I don’t know…I need to know what people think.” Ace grabbed the head and started to walk out of the shallow river with Sabo behind him.

“All you’re doing is convincing yourself that you shouldn’t be alive! It’s not good to keep doing it.” Ace turned around with a glare.

“And what if I _should_ be dead, Sabo? Then what? You’ve heard what they say! I’m the son of a devil! I don’t deserve to live! And you know what? They’re right. I have _his_ blood in me. Even if I change my name I can’t change my blood. I can’t escape it.” The pair stopped at the edge of the riverbank, just out of the water.

Luffy watched them with a look of confusion. He thought they were friends. Why were they arguing? And what does Ace mean he doesn’t deserve to live? Luffy frowned. That’s what the kids from the village had shouted at him. He stood up and walked over to meet them.

“I don’t care if you’re the son of Gol D. Roger! You deserve to live!”

“You don’t get it! How would you understand what it feels like? To know everyone hates you?”

“I do get it, Ace! I’m…” Sabo paused. He hadn’t meant to tell this to Ace but if it helped his argument then it would be worth it. “I’m the son of noble. I ran away because all they would do was force me to study. They didn’t care about me. I wasn’t even a human to them. No. I was just another _pawn_ they could use to improve their social standing. So I _do_ get it. I know what it feels like for people to hate you, despite the fact you've done absolutely nothing to them.”

Ace’s mouth hung open. He figured that Sabo was from a well off family. I mean, what kid wears a top hat otherwise? He just didn’t think his friend would be able to understand what he felt. Before he could respond to the blonde’s confession, he became aware of an unsettling silence around them.

Luffy was normally quiet, seeing as how he never spoke above a whisper if he did talk. But he usually made some sort of sound, whether it was snapping twigs or patting some sort of beat on the ground. Now, though, he was silent. Ace and Sabo turned around to look at the younger boy. They froze when they saw that he was hunched over and shaking, clutching his straw hat.

“Luffy? Are you okay?” Sabo asked as he reached to shake him. Lufffy jerked away and started shaking even harder. Sabo pulled his hand back. He was slightly hurt but mostly confused. What caused this sudden reaction?

The boy’s hands covered his ears. Nobles? Nobles were bad. They were scary. They would hurt the people you care about for their own entertainment. Sabo couldn’t be a noble. Sabo was nice and friendly and what if it was fake? Oh my god it was fake. What if the other boy just wanted to get close to him to hurt him? No. No no no no no no. Luffy had to get away. He couldn’t let the nobles catch him. Suddenly, a pair of arms wrapped around him.

“Oi! Luffy! Calm down!” Ace tried to get the younger boy to relax but it had the opposite effect. Luffy began to thrash in an attempt to get the hands off of him. As he continued to struggle, Ace tightened his grip. One of Luffy’s hands shot up and slammed straight into Ace’s chin. The blow caused Ace to stumble backwards where his foot slid into the river. He lost his balance and fell into the water. “Shit!”

The two boys went in with a splash. The river wasn’t deep, it came up to maybe the middle of their thighs, but it was enough for them to both go under for a few seconds. Ace released his grip and stood up.

“Jesus, Luffy! Be more careful next time, okay?” No response. That wasn’t weird. What was weird was the way the younger boy was still laying in the water. Not moving. Why hasn’t he stood up yet? Ace and Sabo shared a look before each grabbing an arm and yanking Luffy out of the water. They threw him onto the grass, where he coughed up a few mouthfuls of water. Once Sabo was sure the youngest boy was breathing normally, he noticed the way Luffy shivered a little.

The slight breeze around them would be enough to make them sick if they just sat outside in wet clothes. Sabo gathered branches and twigs and began to make a fire to dry them off. Ace pulled off his soaked clothes and laid them on a nearby rock to dry. He watched as Luffy did the same with his shorts but left his shirt on.

“You’ll get sick if you sit around in that shirt y’know,” Ace pointed out. With how skinny the younger was he doubted it would take long. Luffy shook his head. His grandfather had told him if other people saw the brand on his back they would give him back to the Celestial Dragons in order to get a reward. He may not trust the marine but he wasn’t going to risk going back.

Ace groaned. Of course the kid would be stubborn about such a small thing. He didn’t complain about being ignored or having to catch his own food but wouldn’t take off his wet shirt to avoid getting sick. Ace walked over to the younger boy and moved to grab his shirt but Luffy moved just out of reach. His eyebrow twitched.

“Agh! I don’t have time for this!” In one swift movement, Ace grabbed the bottom of Luffy’s shirt and yanked it up. Luffy tried to pull it back, but Ace wasn’t backing down.

“That mark…” Sabo whispered from behind the pair. He had just finished making sure the fire wouldn’t go out when he glanced up to see what the other two were arguing over.

The concern in the blonde’s voice was enough to make Ace stop. What mark? He stared at Luffy, who looked on the verge of tears. Although no words were coming out of the boy’s mouth, Ace could see him mouthing something.

“What’s it a mark of?”

“It’s…” Sabo face was ghost white. His hands shook as they dangled by his sides. “It’s the mark used by Celestial Dragons.” Luffy stared at the ground, wrapping his arms around himself to seek some sort of comfort. “They use it to brand their slaves…And strip them of their freedom. For life.”

Horror. Concern. Fear. Terror. Sabo was experiencing a whirlwind of emotions but none of them were positive. A slave? Luffy was a slave? He’s seen his fair share of them, seeing as how some nobles owned a few. They were treated like dirt. Like they weren’t even good enough to be considered human. But that was nothing compared to the rumors he heard about Celestial Dragons. They took everything to a whole new level. Noble masters rarely killed their slaves, but Celestial Dragons would order death for fun. He’s never heard of one running away, either. Any runaway would just be dragged back and treated worse than before. Not killed, but tortured. Living just enough to satisfy the sadistic needs of the Celestial Dragons with a god complex day after day.

Ace was confused. But it made sense in its own twisted way. Luffy could feel his cage because he’s been in one. Luffy knows what it’s like to lose your freedom. Ace wrapped his arms around the younger boy and guided him towards the fire. With Sabo on one side and Ace on the other, hopefully they’ll dry fast enough.

 

“You know,” Sabo started as he pulled a chunk of meat away from the fire to check if it was done. “I want to go to sea and write a book about my adventures. I want to be free and do what I want without anyone trying to hold me back.” He took a bite out of the meat. Ace looked at him from across the fire. They had put their dry clothes back on a while ago but it was relaxing to just have the three of them sitting together.

“I want to become a pirate so everyone knows my name. I’m gonna make a name for myself and not live in his shadow,” Ace continued.

“Pi’te King,” Luffy whispered. The determination in his eyes shone as brightly as the fire before him. The trio looked at each other and smiled.

“No matter what, we’ll be the freest pirates on the sea!” They all agreed, but Ace paused as he thought of something.

“I’ll be right back. Stay here you guys!” He jumped up and sprinted off into the forest. Luffy and Sabo shrugged before going back to their meal. By the time Ace got back all of the meat was gone. He placed three objects on the ground before pouring a liquid into each one. As soon as he was finished, he gave one to the other boys.

“What’s this for?” Sabo asked as he stared into the small, red cup in his hand. Ace smirked.

“If you drink from sake cups with someone you’ll become brothers!” Luffy tilted his head to the side. There was that word again. What exactly was a ‘brother’?

“Ah. A brother is… They’re family. Someone who will be there for you whenever you need help. Someone who you can always trust. Someone who will protect you,” Sabo explained. Luffy nodded.

“We might not be together all the time, but no matter what we’ll help each other! Our bond as brothers will keep us connected! No matter where we are, or what we do, our bond will never be broken! With this, starting today, we’re brothers!” All three clinked their cups together over the fire before drinking the sake in one gulp.

 

Sabo squeezed his eyes closed as a streak of sunlight from the window blinded him. He moved to get up but that was proving to be a challenging task with the weight of a couple extra limbs on his chest. The trio was sleeping in a triangle formation, as they have for the past week that Sabo has lived with them. It didn’t feel right for him to be the only one of their newly made brotherhood that slept alone.

Luffy’s leg was at the bottom of his ribcage. Ace’s arm was a few centimeters from crushing his windpipe. Despite that fact that he couldn’t move, he wouldn’t change a thing. A small smile spread across his lips as he looked at his brothers. His smile widened. His own parents cared about him less than his brothers, _god he loved that word_ , did. Just because they vowed to protect each other, though, doesn’t mean they couldn’t argue.

With that thought, the blond grabbed the arm that had the misfortune to be touching him this fine morning and promptly gave it an Indian burn. The victim woke up with a jump and whipped his arm away.

“What the actual shit, Sabo?” Ace moaned. He was too tired for this. He wasn’t awake enough to argue but still. Now his arm felt like it was dying. “You never do this to Luffy.”

“Well yeah. Luffy is cute and younger than us. You’re just aggressive and…meh.” Sabo tilted his hand side to side to further emphasize his point. Did Ace say he didn’t have enough energy to argue? Scratch that. He jumped on the blonde and they began to wrestle. The pair rolled away, dislodging Luffy’s leg in the process. Being jostled dragged the youngest out of his sleep. One hand reached up to rub his eye.

A sudden low growl was all it took for the older two to separate and throw clothes on. They could finish their small fight later when they sparred. A hungry Luffy was not a pleasant sight. He didn’t get violent or moody like normal people. The atmosphere would be tense, practically suffocating the older two until the youngest had some semblance of food. That wasn’t even the worst part. Sabo would swear on his goggles that Luffy’s eyes go completely black when he gets hungry and it creeps him out to no end. Every time he mentions it to Ace, however, he’s met with the same response.

“That’s not how eyes work, Sabo. You have a tiny black dot and some color and then the white part. Eyes aren’t all black,” Ace finishes with a sigh. He wonders why Sabo is considered the smart one sometimes.

“Just because you lack social skills and can’t look people in the eye doesn’t mean I’m an idiot,” Sabo mutters in response as he grabs his pipe and leads the way towards the forest. They finally catch their prey at the end of the forest, near a cliff that looks out over the sea. A small fire is quickly set up, chunks of meat cooking over it. Throughout the entire meal, Luffy can’t take his eyes off the sparkling blue water stretching as far as the eye can see.

The older boys share a look before smirking and each taking one of Luffy’s arms. They quickly pull him towards the cliff so they are as close to the edge as possible without being in danger of falling off the edge.

“Isn’t the sea great, Luffy?” Ace casts a quick look at the boy next to him to catch the faint nod he knew he would get.

“You know… there’s this thing called a telescope that lets you see objects that are even farther away. You could see more of the ocean.” Two hands gently wrap around his forearm. Sabo looks down, only to be met with the widest eyes he’s seen on the younger. A sad smile found its home on his lips. The fact that Luffy could become so excited by such a mundane item was a reminder of the harsh past he was forced to endure.

“I bet we can find one in Grey Terminal,” Ace added. Before he could say anything else, Luffy had grabbed his hand and began to pull him and Sabo in the direction of the trash heap.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Greetings and happy new year to all my lovely readers! I know it's been a super long time since I've updated (like 5 months?) and wow am I so sorry. I wasn't trying to wait this long to build suspense or anything I promise. Thank you all for your support despite my lack of activity! This chapter was a little short but I have The Plans™ for next chapter and I didn't want to make y'all wait even longer. Please leave any and all comments! I promise I'll respond to them once I see them~!


	10. Chapter 9

Luffy hadn’t been to the Grey Terminal yet. During the past week in which they had become brothers, the older two had been there almost every day in order to collect various scraps of gold and precious metals for their pirate fund. While they never stayed for long, they decided it would be best for Luffy to sit at the edge of the forest that bordered the trash heaps. The first time Ace mentioned Luffy joining them he was quickly shut down.

“Why not?! You know he’s fast enough to keep up with us. Why can’t he come with? Think of how much more we’ll be able to collect with an extra pair of hands.”

“Because, in case you don’t remember, he has a certain mark on his back. If anyone in the Grey Terminal happened to catch a glimpse of it, they could easily capture him and give him to the Celestial Dragons in hopes of being given a Noble Status. Do you really want to let our brother be sold like that?” Ace froze as realization dawned on his face. Until now, he hadn’t quite realized how dangerous their situation was.

“…Luffy maybe you should wait in the forest.” The youngest was disappointed he had to stay back and couldn’t join their adventure but he wasn’t too fond of the idea getting tortured again.

This time was different. Sabo knew there was a telescope in one of the trash piles that sat near the edge of Grey Terminal. He had seen it the last time he was there with Ace. It was a small, wooden one that none of those living in the area would bother to glance at twice. It was, however, the perfect thing for their youngest brother who yearned to see just how vast the ocean could be.

Sabo and Ace were in front of and behind Luffy, respectively, as they carefully made their way towards the trash piles. The blonde quickly looked around to make sure everyone else was focused on their own business. If they already knew the general area of the object they were looking for, it wouldn’t take that long to find it. Even if someone spotted them they wouldn’t go after them for the wooden telescope. It was supposed to be a quick and easy trip. He motioned for his brothers to follow him as he ran to the nearest pile and began to search.

Ace saw some gold necklaces that were apparently too “out of style” for the nobles. He was tempted to pull them out of the pile to look at closer and possibly add to their secret stash but quickly dismissed the idea. The men that searched the piles on a daily basis practically had a sixth sense that told them when someone else found something of value. As soon as something that could be sold for a decent price was found and pulled into the air, at least 6 men would swarm the finder and fight for the object. He couldn’t let their presence be detected so soon. The necklaces were pushed far in to the middle of the pile and his search continued.

In the area next to him, Sabo wasn’t having much luck either. He stood up and dusted his pants off before moving on. He knew it was around here somewhere. As he approached the next pile, he saw Luffy moving various scraps of wood aside. Sabo chuckled and shook his head before joining the younger. Did Luffy even know what a telescope looked like? They had told him it was made of wood but so were half of the things thrown away. He offered his assistance to the younger, which was responded to with an enthusiastic nod, and began to search. Ace soon joined them as they searched the only pile left in hopes the telescope wasn’t crushed by the other garage thrown on top of it.

Sabo huffed in disgust at the amount of perfectly fine clothes, jewelry, and books that nobles threw away for the smallest tear or scratch. Just because it wasn’t in perfect condition didn’t mean it couldn’t be used. A small, rounded piece of wood caught Sabo’s eye. It had to be the telescope. His hand froze mere inches away from grabbing it by the sudden voice behind him.

“So the rumors were true… A blonde child in a top hat was seen in this filth and I thought it might be you. How… disgusting. You better be grateful I took the time to come here to find you. Now, come along Sabo. You needn’t spend another second hanging around this garbage. You missed plenty of lessons after your little running away stunt. Come back home while you still have a chance to catch up with your work and marry the princess,” a man with a handkerchief covering his mouth said as he glared at the three boys in front of him. The guards that accompanied him surrounded the brothers. Ace sent Sabo a quizzical look but quickly became defensive after he noticed the look of panic on the other’s face.

It was the worst case scenario. Sabo was, to put it simply, freaking out. Of all the people to see them of course it had to be his father. Someone who was so focused on gaining more wealth and power that he would do anything to achieve it. The man that made him run away. The man that would happily hand Luffy back to the Celestial Dragons without a second thought. One wrong move and his brother was going to be sentenced to a life of torture. Again. To make matters worse, if they miraculously found out about Ace’s heritage then he would be executed, regardless of the fact Ace had done nothing worthy of such punishment. He couldn’t, wouldn’t, let it happen. The only silver lining was that only the three of them knew about Luffy’s brand and Ace’s father. Sabo took a calming breath and stood up.

The nobleman smirked. Luffy’s eyes widened as he realized who it was. His heartbeat accelerated as the chance of being caught became higher. He was lost in thought until he noticed Sabo walking towards the noble with a look mixed between defeat and pride.

“Ace. Luffy. I guess this is it. We’ll always be brothers. I might not be able to set sail like you guys, but promise me you’ll accomplish your dreams.” Sabo flinched as his father laid his hand on his shoulder. He desperately wanted to fight this and prevent his freedom from being taken away, but if his little brother was able to survive being a slave to some of the worst people in the world then surely he could survive being forced to live the life of a noble. He just couldn’t sacrifice his brothers’ well-being for his own freedom.

“I’m glad you didn’t bother resisting, seeing as it would have been futile. Guards, round up these boys and prepare to sell them. They seem strong enough to make good gifts for St. Chester who is visiting in a few days,” Sabo’s father instructed as he began to lead his son back to their home. The blonde’s eyes widened in panic. Why is it that everything seems to go wrong in the worst way? He was already being forced to return to being a stepping stool for his father to obtain a higher status, now his brothers have to lose their freedom as well? It wasn’t fair. It wasn’t just.

The guard closest to Luffy reached out to grab the child when Luffy rolled back into a fighting stance. They let out an aggravated growl at the show of disobedience, motioning for another to come help him while the other two went after Ace. Luffy dodged the four hands trying to grab him. He picked up a wooden board that was laying on the ground nearby and swung it at the first guard, who dodged. Luffy whipped the board at his second attacker and dove between the legs of the first. He had successfully gotten past the men aiming for him just in time to watch Ace get hit on the back of the head and collapse.

Rage filled Luffy’s mind as Ace shook his head to recover from the hit only to be restrained by two of the guards. He kept shouting at Luffy to run. But how could he? They were hurting his brothers, the first two people that he formed this kind of bond with outside of the cells. They may not have understood exactly what he has been through but they were still willing to be close to him and not stab him in the back. They were willing to sacrifice themselves for him.

Luffy felt a pair of hands grab his arms and yank him off of the ground. The other man took this chance to grab Luffy’s legs so he was unable to kick them. No matter how much he struggled he couldn’t break free. He couldn’t think clearly as he watched Sabo’s dad push Sabo ahead of him as the men carried him and Ace. They were all losing their freedom in one fell swoop. Why? Why? He felt a rush of pain at the top of his head as horns pushed out and heat spread from that area to the bottom of his feet. It lasted for a brief second as he lost control. His black claw like nails dug into the hands wrapped around his wrists. Blood flowed across his palms once his captor let go. His head slammed into the ground as his feet remained suspended.

The next second, he focused on the man holding his ankles. Luffy’s black eyes bore into the man’s soul. He released Luffy and instead charged at the noble whose eyes widened in shock. Seeing their boss, and subsequently their paycheck, in danger, the men holding Ace dropped him in favor of saving the noble. The sudden distraction led to Sabo and Ace running to meet up with each other and staring at Luffy in surprise.

“Well that’s…new,” Sabo muttered as they stared at their brother. Luffy’s tail flicked back and forth, a snarl sneaking past his lips like a cornered animal. The guard Luffy had originally clawed had pulled out a knife to get revenge with. He sprinted towards Luffy, running chest first into sharp claws that lifted him over the boy’s head to get enough leverage to slam him into the ground. A sickening crack was heard as his neck bent at a strange angle.

“H-He’s a monster! The devil! Someone kill it!” The noble cried. The guard Luffy had accidentally heightened the anger of snapped out of it. All of them rushed towards Luffy only to stop after taking their first couple steps. A wave of fear and unrelenting power washed over them before they fell unconscious.

The noble collapsed behind Sabo and Ace, who were still frozen in shock. Their little brother, who would give them the brightest smile and understood their pain and comforted them without words, had killed someone and knocked three others unconscious.

“He won’t attack us…right?” Ace quietly questioned. He slowly walked towards his youngest brother with his hands up. “Hey, Luffy, it’s us. Your brothers. Ace and Sabo. It’s just us. Don’t be afraid. You know we won’t hurt you, right?” The two older boys stood in front of the youngest, waiting for a reaction.

Luffy paused. He was processing the voices he just heard and thinking about what they were saying. Ace and Sabo. His brothers. Of course he wouldn’t hurt them. His body felt slightly cooler as his transformation released. Changing back to normal didn’t hurt. If anything, it was a feeling of relief as his skin returned to its normal color. As his transformation wore off, he tilted forward only to be caught by the two that managed to calm him down.

“Hey, don’t worry Luffy. We’re gonna go home now okay?” Sabo whispered as he lightly hugged the raven haired boy.

“T-T-That’s right! You two better stay in that forest with that devil spawn! If it comes near me I’ll have a marine admiral come take care of it!” Sabo’s father called as he ran back towards the gate that lead to the city. Sabo rolled his eyes. As if they would send an admiral to grant the whims of a noble that isn’t a Celestial Dragon.

Luffy slowly sat up and stared at the bodies lying around him. He used his devil fruit powers. In front of Ace and Sabo. Memories of the Fuusha Village citizens calling him names rang through his mind. They were different. They were his brothers and would do anything to protect him, just like he would do anything for them. Right? He pushed back the tiny voice in his mind that reminded him they made that promise before they knew what he was really like.

The other two stared at Luffy, watching him curl in on himself in doubt, unsure of what to do. They didn’t even know he could change like that, much less how violent he could be. And how did the rest of the guards get knocked out at the same time without being attacked?

“Come on guys, let’s go before more guards come,” Sabo reasoned. He held a hand out towards each of his brothers. Ace gladly took it and held out his other towards Luffy, who had yet to move. Luffy slowly looked up, a hint of fear in eyes at the thought of being rejected by the two before him. He paused once he noticed the hands extended towards him.

“Yeah. Are you coming or what?” Ace huffed. A smile broke across his face as Luffy took each of his brothers’ hands and stood up, following them back into the forest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tada! It only took half a year but here's the next chapter! Thank you to everyone who has bothered to stay with this story and to those of you who are new. Life has been absolutely crazy lately for me. I finished my first year at college, my grandmother got diagnosed with breast cancer, and I've been working two jobs in order to try to save up to buy BTS concert tickets. Plus, I had the worst case of writers block since I was trying too hard to stick to the story before I realized: this is an AU. That gave me a great idea and let me pump this chapter out in a couple days. If any of you lovely readers have any suggestions or comments, please feel free to share! (It motivates me and can give me ideas that help me write even faster)


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